


When the Twilight Never Comes

by Alley_Cat



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/M, Time Travel, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-06
Updated: 2012-07-01
Packaged: 2017-11-07 01:51:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 179,493
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/425592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alley_Cat/pseuds/Alley_Cat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Could it be that some things are just meant to be?</p><p>Without Edward to save her, Bella is hit by Tyler's van and is taken to the hospital, barely alive. She is lucky enough to cross paths with Carlisle Cullen, a vampire doctor who saves her life.</p><p>Bella is in danger once again during a simple trip to Port Angeles and once again, there is no Edward in sight, but Jacob Black is all too happy to step in his place.</p><p>Carlisle is dangerously outnumbered when facing the three nomads, until a certain pair of golden-eyed vampires show up to help.</p><p>So where is Carlisle's family? Who is haunting his house? Is Jacob Black really gay? Is Sam a drug-dealer? And who is responsible for turning everything upside down – The Volturi? The Quileute Elders? Or maybe the source is much closer to home than everyone thinks.</p><p>Some things even Alice can't predict.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Accident

**Author's Note:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Carlisle**

"Page Dr. Cullen and prepare Operating Room three." A familiar voice calling my name drew my attention from the book I was reading. The voice belonged to one of the nurses working in the hospital. _So much for lunch break_ , I thought with a smile. As it was a custom of mine, I spent my break reading in my office. It was an easier way, and a more pleasant one, to spend the duration of my break. I had already placed the book back on the shelf when my pager went off. I was out of my office before the end of the beep. Vampire speed is very useful at times.

"What happened?" I heard the nurse ask as I slowed down to a much slower, human, pace, and headed down the hall.

"Car accident in Forks High," a male voice replied. "Intubation was performed on scene. Injuries sustained to the left side of the body; two fractured ribs, severe lung contusion, closed fracture of the left arm and suspected head trauma." The information was delivered in the usual curt way the paramedics spoke-maximum information in a minimum amount of time.

I heard paper rustling and a gurney being wheeled away under the instructions of the nurse. I turned the corner just in time to hear the nurse, Denise, gasp. "Oh, my god, it's the Chief's daughter. Has he been notified?"

"Yes, he arrived at the scene just as we were leaving. He will be coming in with the driver of the car that hit her."

"Denise," I made my presence be known, "you paged me?" It was the normal thing to ask. Although it would have been more efficient to just walk straight through to OP three, I had to keep my human façade and pretend I didn't hear their conversation.

Denise gave me the same briefing I had heard from the paramedic earlier. "I'll go prep," I said as the doors opened once again and another young human was led inside on a gurney.

"She's in OP three," Denise added before turning to the paramedic to receive the next patient.

w.W.w

Five hours later, the chief's daughter was transferred to a recovery room. The girl had a mild cerebral concussion, which did not require anything more than time to heal, but no major head trauma. I smiled to myself when I remembered seeing the results of her CAT scan. The girl had so many head contusions that I couldn't help but wonder how many times the poor thing had hit her head in the past. I went out to the hall to speak with her father, Chief Charlie Swan, the head of the local police force.

"Hello, Chief Swan," I said in a quiet voice.

"How is she?" Charlie asked. His eyes filled with both fear and pain.

"She will be fine. Her left arm is broken and she has a mild concussion. Right now, she is still sedated and connected to artificial respiration. She's a fighter, Charlie," I said, placing my hand on his shoulder in a comforting manner. "She will be up in no time." I smiled at him. "Once the nurse finishes inside, you can come in and see your daughter."

"Thank you, Dr. Cullen"

"Just doing my job." I smiled again and continued to my next patient.

I heard the nurse exit the room a moment later and Charlie's heavy footsteps as he walked in. Even through the walls separating between the girl's room and the room I was in now, I heard him speak to his daughter. The words were not important, but his tone expressed so much love for his only child that I felt my own still heart squeeze in my chest.

He almost lost her today. Even without knowing that she arrived with a very low body temperature of 89.6 degrees due to blood loss, he knew that it was a very close call. She received four units of blood and two liters of fluid before we were able to stabilize her. _She is lucky to be alive_.

I continued my rounds, walking further away from the recovery room. One of the patients I checked up on was the driver of the van that hit the girl. He had mostly cuts from the windshield and bruises from the seatbelt. There were no major injuries, so I instructed the nurse to discharge him.

At five thirty, even though my shift was already over, I went by Miss Swan's room. There was something about the human girl that triggered my instinct to protect. Maybe it was her father's emotions or maybe it was just her young age. Either way, I felt compelled to check up on her before leaving the hospital for the evening.

The girl was still sedated. She would remain in that condition for the next two days at the minimum until she could be taken off the artificial respiration. The blow to the left side of her body caused a severe lung contusion that had to be given time to heal before she could be awakened. There was no real need for me to check up on her, the night shift will be making their rounds within the hour, but I had to see her.

Chief Swan was sitting next to her bed when I walked through the door, and for a moment, I could not help but feel envious. I have been alone for more than three and a half centuries now. I knew that as a vampire, I could never hope for children of my own, but I craved for a family nonetheless. In my darkest hours, I would think about changing a human to keep me company, but I dared not damn a human to this existence.

I drove to my home on the outskirts of the city. It was dark outside, despite the relatively early hour. It was only six, but the sun was long gone. The days were growing shorter. Another year of loneliness was coming to an end.

I parked my Mercedes in the garage and entered my home through the adjoining door. Just like any other night, the house was empty, but unlike other nights, I felt something was different about today. I couldn't explain the feeling I had, that something was completely and utterly wrong.

I walked through the living room and went up the stairs to the second floor, headed to my bedroom. There was something missing, I thought, but it was not the longing for a family I felt earlier. Instead, I had a feeling as though someone was supposed to be here in the house, with me.

I decided to pass my bedroom and enter my study. It was my favorite room in the house. I could-and often did-sit in this room for hours. I can't explain why I bought such a big house. It was much too big for me to live in it alone, and yet, from the first moment I entered the city it felt as though something was drawing me to it. Tonight, as I sat in the leather chair behind my desk, I did not pull a book from the library to read, as I would normally do. I was deep in thought.

Something wasn't right.

w.W.w

**Bella**

Pain. There was nothing but pain. Everything hurt so much. I couldn't move my toes, I couldn't feel my fingers, I couldn't see... _Oh, my god, I can't see!_

I heard a beeping sound, accelerating with each passing second. It was beeping faster, too fast. Panic filled my body, crushing my lungs. _I can't breathe!_ I wanted to scream, but I couldn't find my voice. I wanted to move, but I didn't feel my own body.

Suddenly, I felt something cold touching my wrist. If I could have moved, I would have jumped. The beeping sound was so fast now that it sounded almost like a single continuous tune. I felt something cool brush against my forehead and then I heard the most beautiful sound in my life.

"Isabella, my name is Dr. Cullen. You have been in a car accident, but you are safe now." The voice was soft and flowing like honey.

I heard the beeping sound slow down, and I felt the panic leave my body. I felt the pain again. It was everywhere. I wanted to cry, to scream, to tear something...

"I know that you are in pain," the soft voice continued to caress my thoughts, "but I need you to try and open your eyes."

How could I refuse that voice?

I couldn't.

I searched my aching body and tried to gather the strength to open my eyes. What a silly notion. Opening my eyes should be as easy as breathing, but as breathing now was a painfully difficult task, opening my eyes was just as hard.

At first, everything was a blur. The blinding white light was hurting my eyes and I couldn't see anything. "Light...hurt," I tried to mumble.

I couldn't hear my own voice, but apparently, someone else could because the next thing I knew, the light was off.

I sighed in relief and the pain shot right up my body. My lungs, my chest, my ribs...everything hurt. I opened my eyes a little wider. Now that the painful light was off, I could fully open my eyes. I saw the plain walls and heard the beeping machinery. I had been in places like this one for far too many times not to know where I was-a hospital room. _Great_.

A figure was leaning over me. I tried to focus my eyes to see who it was. He was thin and dressed in a white coat. A doctor, I thought, probably Dr. Cullen.

"Good," he said in his honey-like voice. "Welcome back, Isabella." I frowned, only to find that this was painful as well. I didn't like to be called Isabella.

"She prefers Bella," I heard my dad say, and by the tone of his voice, I was sure he was smiling.

I turned my head, looking for my father. I groaned. Was there _any_ movement I could make _without_ it being painful?

"Welcome back, Bella," the doctor repeated, and I focused my eyes on him. He was the most beautiful man I had ever seen. His hair was blond and cut short. His eyes were bright, but in the relative darkness in the room, I could not be sure of their color. He had high cheekbones and a soft smile on his lips. I noticed that he was very pale and that there were bruise-like shadows under his eyes, telling of what must have been a very long shift. He looked more like he a male model, than a doctor, I decided.

"You're pretty," I heard myself whisper and then the chuckles of both my father and my doctor. _Ok, so obviously my brain-to-mouth filter isn't working at the moment_. I felt the heat rise in my cheeks, and I knew I was blushing. The good thing about the blush was that at least it didn't hurt.

"I need to check your bodily functions," said Dr. Cullen and I felt something cold press against my right foot. _Do all doctors have cold hands?_

"Can you please move the toes on your right foot?"

I did as he asked and immediately felt better-it was yet another thing I could do without pain.

"Ok, now the left. Excellent! Now, can you feel my hand in your right hand?"

I felt his cool touch hovering on the fingers of my right hand, and nodded. _Not a good idea_ , I thought as the pain swirled around my head, making me dizzy.

"Squeeze my hand. Good. Now, can you feel me touching your left hand?"

I felt the soft and cold caress on my left hand. This time I whispered, "Yes," instead of nodding. I waited for him to ask me to squeeze his hand, but he didn't.

"Your left arm is broken," Dr. Cullen said. "You have a cast on it, which will need to stay on for the next three weeks at the minimum."

Well, that explains why he didn't want me to squeeze his hand.

"You also have two fractured ribs, which is the reason you are bandaged up fairly tightly," he continued to explain. "You might also have quite a headache...?" his tone turned to a question.

"Feels like a bunch of evil Pinocchios are having a slumber party inside my head." Yeah, I officially had absolutely no brain-to-mouth filter.

They both laughed. The model-like doctor had a wonderful laugh, I noted. It was quiet with a husky quality to it, and the smile that spread on his face was worth the embarrassment.

"That is because you suffered a mild concussion. Other than that, it's mostly cuts and bruises."

"Just another Monday." I smiled. I was a klutz and there was no denying it. Cuts and bruises were nothing new to me.

"It's Thursday, actually," Charlie corrected.

"Thursday?" I gasped, realizing that I have lost three days, but I was immediately sorry. It hurt like hell. _Damned broken ribs!_

"You were sedated," Dr. Cullen explained. "Can I turn on the lights?"

"I think so," I said, still whispering.

He disappeared from view and after a few moments, I saw the lights come to life. It wasn't as painful as earlier, but still took several seconds for me to get used to it.

"How are you feeling?" The doctor returned to hover next to my bed. Wow, he was even more beautiful with the lights on. Thankfully, my filter seemed to have been awakened along with the lights, and I didn't say anything out loud. I could see now that his eyes were golden, and they reminded me of the color of dark and rich honey.

"I'm fine," I replied, more out of habit than anything else, really.

"Well, it will take you a while to be really fine," he smiled again and it lit his face up so much so that I was smiling back at him before my mind even registered the desire to do so, "but you will be just fine. I need to go now, but I'll check up on you later today. If there is anything you need, just press this button," he showed me a remote control of some sort next to my right hand, with a single green button on it, "and a nurse will come see you"

"Okay," I said. I was going to nod, but I remembered the feeling of dizziness that I had the last time I did that and used a verbal reply instead.

"Have a good evening," Charlie said to the doctor before he left. "Hey, kiddo," he turned to me. "you scared me there..." he confessed.

"I'm sorry," I said, honestly sorry for making worry so much.

"I know. It's not _your_ fault"

"It's _nobody's_ fault," I said firmly. "It was an accident. If you want to blame it on someone, blame it on the ice."

"That Tyler kid can kiss his license goodbye," he continued as if I hadn't spoken.

"No, Dad, please don't. Tyler didn't mean to hurt me. Like I said, it was an _accident_ ," I raised my voice. It wasn't at all impressive, considering I couldn't speak much louder than a hoarse whisper.

"Okay, I won't argue." Charlie soothed me. "You need to rest and I have got to go back to the station. I'll drop by later this evening." He gave me a pat on my head-which was probably about the only place that wasn't covered up in bandages-and leaned back.

"See you," I murmured and my gaze followed him as he exited the room. _He looks tired_ , I thought. _I guess he wasn't getting much sleep lately_. It made me sad again, but I soon felt sleepy, and my eyes drooped. There was one last coherent thought in my mind before I drifted off to sleep. I was convinced that somehow the day of the accident should have gone completely different. There was something missing. I didn't know what that was, but I was sure of it.

Something wasn't right.

w.W.w

Over the following days, I was drifting in and out of consciousness. Everything seemed to blur together and I couldn't remember the days passing. Dr. Cullen placed me on some very strong pain medications that made me very sleepy most of the time. I remembered him visiting, and I remembered my dad sitting with me. I was pretty sure I remembered Tyler Crowley, and even Jessica Stanley, come by to visit me, but every time I woke up, I wouldn't know if a whole day had past or just a few hours since the last time I was awake.

I lost track of time and I had to be reminded which day it was each time I opened my eyes. The feeling of wrongness I had the first time I woke up never returned. I didn't know what had triggered it _. I was probably delusional, or maybe I just hit my head one too many times._

A week had passed before the pain medication was reduced and I was finally able to keep track of the time, but the following days were hard ones. I felt itchy absolutely _everywhere_. I felt pain and helplessness. I was crying almost all the time. I was making my father miserable, but I couldn't stop myself, which only made me feel even worse and I bring on the tears again. I hated _everything_ and _everyone._ Some part of me was aware that I was acting like a two-year-old on a tantrum, but that part was buried deep under the frustration, the pain, and the misery.

I hated the nurses who walked in and out of my room. I hated the fact that I needed help getting out of bed to get to the bathroom. I hated the food-it was dreadful. I hated the pain-there was too much of it. I hated absolutely _everyone_. And I hated myself for hating.

I was crying myself to sleep almost every night, but I was hardly able to sleep. My head ached, my lungs hurt, and my ribs throbbed with pain every time I took breath that was too deep. I was a wreck by the end of the week.

It was Friday afternoon and I had been crying for two hours now. Not sobbing like other times, just leaning on the too-hard pillow-another thing I hated-and letting my tears fall. I felt terrible. I wanted to go home, I wanted _my_ bed and _my_ pillow, and most of all, I wanted to be held and soothed. For the first time in more years then I cared remember, I wanted my mom.

The thoughts about my mother brought a whole new wave of tears. She died six months ago. She and Phil, her new husband, went skydiving-a stupid present from Phil to my mother on her birthday. Her parachute failed and she plunged to her death. Phil was too depressed after her death. A week after her funeral, I found his body in the living room. The death was determined accidental-a mixture of alcohol and painkiller overdose that had caused his heart to stop-but I always wondered.

I moved in with Charlie soon afterwards. He was on duty this afternoon and I felt lonely. Once again, I felt that there was something wrong, just like the feeling I had when I first woke up after the accident. It was as though there was someone missing from my life-and it wasn't a parent. It was a friend, but I didn't know who.

"Bella?" a soft rich voice called my name from the entrance to my room. I didn't turn my head. My eyes were fixed on the window. All I could see was a piece of gray sky. It was the same as every other day.

I didn't say anything.

I felt a feather-light caress on my head, and turned in surprise. I didn't hear him move. I watched his beautifully pale face through my tears. His eyes were darker today, no longer the honey-like gold color I saw them at the beginning of the week. They were dark brown, like rich chocolate, and I wondered if he had gotten contacts. I couldn't imagine why he would do that. His eyes were just as beautiful as the rest of him.

"Are you in pain?" he asked me in his quiet musical voice.

"Not the physical kind," I replied truthfully, looking at him as he sat on a chair next to me and held my healthy hand in his cold one. He began tracing slow soothing circles on the palm of my hand.

"What is wrong, then?" he asked in a pleading tone that I could not refuse. "You know that you can tell me."

I nodded and took a deep breath, trying to clear my throat so I could speak. "I don't really know what's wrong," I whispered and my voice broke. "I'm just miserable."

He seemed to think my words over carefully before he said, "It is okay to feel miserable from time to time." He smiled very gently, just a light tug on one side of his mouth. "It is okay to have a good cry," His other hand wiped away the tears from my eyes, his touch cool and light, "and it is okay to talk about it. It will make you feel better," he coaxed.

"I think I'm just lonely. I miss my mother. I miss the life I had with her..." I trailed off, thinking about happy memories I had of Rene, but that was not all. I can't say what exactly made me say that, but I heard myself whisper the words before I could even think of stopping myself "...and I feel like there is something wrong, like I'm missing something, like something is not right...That doesn't make much sense, I know." I looked down, avoiding him, and felt the blush color my cheeks scarlet.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

I froze. It was the same thought I had on the day of her accident, word for word. I didn't know why I approached her, or why I was sitting next to this young woman and holding her hand. I didn't know why her pain touched me so, why the sight of her tears made my stone cold heart ache, but it did. I felt her misery throughout the week. I saw the traces of tears on her cheeks when she slept. I heard the muffled sobs when she thought no one could hear, and something inside me, something on the instinctive level, made we approach to her today. Something made me try to comfort this intriguing human girl. It was as if her pain was my pain. I have come to feel very protective of her, almost like she was _my_ daughter.

"It will get better with time," I told her. I knew she had lost her mother very recently, followed by finding her stepfather's body, and then moving half way across the country from Phoenix to Forks to live with her father. So many changes were bound to leave their mark. "Don't chastise yourself for feeling the way you feel. It will only make you sink lower," I advised, knowing all too well what dwelling in misery and then being overcome by self-loathing felt like. "I actually came to tell you that you could go home on Monday." I gently brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear and saw the beginning of a smile on her lips.

"Really? I could go home?" Her voice was just above whisper, but I had no trouble hearing her.

"Yes, you are recovering amazingly well. There is no reason why you can't go home." I gently pulled away from her, and the loss of her warm hand was strangely unpleasant. "You will need to rest for a few more days at home, but I believe that by next Monday you will be able to go back to school."

I watched her face as that hint of a smile turned into the real thing. Her eyes sparkled with joy, and it suddenly occurred to me how beautiful she was when she smiled.

"I'd like that," she said, her voice stronger now. "Thank you, Dr. Cullen"

"I think you can call me Carlisle." I smiled at her and stood up.

"Carlisle," she amended.

"I will see you tomorrow noon for another checkup. Try and get some sleep."

"I will," she promised.

I signed the chart at the foot of her bed and walked out of the room. My shift had ended ten minutes ago, but I was not anxious to leave the hospital. There was nothing waiting for me at home.

A flicker of an image crossed my mind as I walked through the corridors of Forks General Hospital. It was an image of several blurred figures sitting in the living room of my home, sounds of laughter filling the room. _Wishful thinking again, Carlisle. Stop tormenting yourself._

w.W.w

Bella Swan was discharged on the following Monday. This event should not have been significant to me, after all, I have patients discharged daily, but I felt a real sense of loss when she left the hospital. It was irrational, odd, and wrong on so many levels that I felt like banging my head against a wall, but since in that scenario the only thing that would be harmed was the wall, and since my self-control was much too strong for me to allow myself such a childish action, all the walls around me remained intact.

The following days were hard. The loneliness was becoming too much to handle, and time lost all meaning to me once again. I felt as though I was genuinely suffocating, and as a creature that did not need oxygen to survive, that feeling was mystifying. If In the past there were times when I doubted my ability to remain sane, these days I became convinced that I have finally lost the battle.

* * *

**I am not a doctor and I don't have any medical training, so the details may not be one hundred percent accurate from a medical point of view. I would have loved Carlisle to be my privet tutor, but unfortunately, I have to settle for Wikipedia...**

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	2. Family and Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

The three weeks I spent in the hospital meant that the following week at home was spent catching up on everything I had missed in school. The teachers allowed me to submit my homework once I got back to school, and to substitute the one test I had missed—in English—I would be submitting a long essay on the works of Jane Austin. All in all, not as bad as I thought it would be. However, it did mean that whenever I was not sleeping, cooking or eating—I was doing my homework. Trig was the hardest subject, and after spending days battling with it, I finally called Angela on Friday. Thank God for friends! Angela wasn't in my Trig class, but the girl was smart—really smart! With her sitting next to me in the living room, I was done with all the homework within just a few hours.

"You are a lifesaver!" I told her.

"I was happy I could help." Angela smiled. "How are you feeling?" Her eyes were gentle and I saw that she was genuinely concerned.

"I feel better." I smiled "I'm still terribly uncoordinated, but I don't think that it has anything to do with the accident…" I joked and she smiled. Angela was one of the few people I was comfortable talking to. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I miss school," I said, feeling as though I was confessing a murder.

"It's okay." She smiled. "Your secret's safe with me." She winked and I laughed in response.

Angela left a short while later. I invited her to stay over for dinner, but she said that her mom needed her help with her two younger twin brothers. They were into their terrible twos and could be a handful for one person to deal with, especially at dinnertime. I saw the smile in her eyes when she spoke of her family and I felt a light tug inside me. The only family I had left was Charlie. I missed my mother, and on some level, being an only child myself, I was a bit jealous of Angela for having siblings.

I picked up my books from the living room and put them away in my bedroom. Charlie would be arriving home in an hour, so I had plenty of time to come up with something for dinner. Nothing fancy—I decided after fiving it some thought—just some steak and baked potatoes.

In the last six months, I came to realize that Charlie was easy to live with. Sometimes it was almost like living on my own while still having someone around when I needed the company. Charlie didn't hover. For the most part, he kept to himself, yet he was always there. When I wanted company, I could talk to him, and when I wanted peace and quiet—he let me be and wasn't offended.

While Charlie was the easy part, school was hard. Well, not school as much as the students in it. The first day I came back was like having the first day of school all over again. I thought the accident would be old news by then, but everyone still stared at me.

I wanted to disappear.

When it was time for lunch, I even considered hiding in my truck. The only reason I sat down with Jessica, Angela, Lauren, Tyler, Mike, Ben, and Eric at the table in the cafeteria was because I refused to let everyone know I was a coward.

The second week of school brought the Spring Dance fever. It was the only thing people talked about. Flyers were being handed out almost daily and the corridor walls looked like one giant billboard, covered with posters. I had no intention of going. Dancing was the worst possible activity for me. The only thing that would be more dangerous than me dancing would be me dancing while there were people around—they could, and probably _would,_ get hurt in that scenario.

Even though the dance was a Girls' Choice—meaning, a dance to which the _girls_ ask the _boys_ out—I was still approached by Mike, Eric, and even Tyler—who was still feeling guilty about the accident. I couldn't understand what part of 'the girls ask the boys' was unclear to them. Therefore, by the time I found Ben waiting for me next to my truck on Thursday after class, I wanted to scream out loud and inflict some serious bodily harm.

"Hi Ben, what's up?" I asked, trying my best to keep my voice as calm as possible.

"Um… Hi, eh, Bella," Ben fidgeted and kept his eyes firmly on the ground, "I wanted to talk to you… about the dance." Although clearly it wasn't a question, his tone made it sound like one.

"The _Girls' Choice_ dance?" I asked, trying not to over-emphasize the words 'Girls' Choice'.

"Yeah, that one." Ben seemed relieved for a moment but then tensed again as he continued to speak, "I wanted to ask you something… Um…" he hesitated.

I did my best not to show my irritation. _God, please don't ask me to ask you, please._

"It's about Angela," he finally mumbled.

"Angela?" My curiosity piqued.

"I was wondering if you knew if… she asked someone out yet." Ben seemed to turn a deeper shade of red with each word that came out of his mouth. "I mean, I know she's your friend, I thought… well, maybe…" he stuttered and trailed off.

"She didn't ask anyone," I said gently and heard his sigh of relief at my words. "I'll put in a good word for you." I smiled at him and saw his expression change from embarrassment to joy, hope and then doubt.

"Really? You would?"

"Promise," I said as I opened the door of my truck.

"Thanks." He had a huge smile on his face.

"You're welcome." I smiled back at him.

My smile was still there even fifteen minutes later when I got back home. It looked like the end of the week would be much better than its beginning.

The next day, I caught up with Angela in the morning before school started. It was an unusually sunny day, one of the brightest days I've seen since moving to Forks. Angela was sitting at one of the very-rarely used picnic tables next to the parking lot. She was very happy when I told her what Ben had said. Apparently, she wanted to ask him to the dance but was afraid that he would say no. Several hours later, as I was waiting in line in the cafeteria, Angela came up to me. Her face was almost as red as Ben's had been the day before, when she whispered excitedly that he had said yes.

"We should all go to Port Angeles to buy dresses," Jessica announced, hearing Angela's whispered confession.

"Bella, will you come with us?" Angela asked quietly while Jessica and Lauren were already discussing the when and where parts of the trip. "I would love it if you could help me pick out a dress."

"I'd love to go with you." I may not like shopping trips and spending an afternoon with Lauren—who seemed to hold some kind of a grudge against me—was even less to my liking, but I _did_ want to help Angela. _Besides, I can definitely use a trip to the bookstore._

We made plans for that afternoon. Jessica said, and I agreed, that a nice weather like today was a shame to waste. However, things didn't work out that day. When I got back home, Jessica called and said that both Lauren and she couldn't make it. She asked if I minded rescheduling for next week. After agreeing, I called Angela to tell her we would be taking a rain check and found out that one of the twins was sick—and she was just about to call and cancel herself. Not two minutes after hanging up, Charlie called. He was bringing Billy Black and his son Jacob over tonight.

"Don't bother with dinner, Bells, we'll bring pizza," he said before hanging up.

With that many people calling, I stood by the phone for a moment longer just to make sure that it didn't call again.

w.W.w

I remembered Billy very vaguely. The last time I'd seen him was when I was around eleven. Jacob, or Jake, as he preferred, was a year younger than I, and although he had insisted that we were friends when we were little and that we even "used to make mud-pies together", I didn't remember him at all. Fortunately, it didn't prove to be a problem. Jake was really easy to like, and just like with Angela, I felt comfortable talking to him without being self-conscious about every word that comes out of my mouth.

While our fathers argued over the game that they were watching on TV, I went to make us popcorn. Jake followed me into the kitchen and we were talking while the popcorn was in the microwave.

"Are they always like that?" I asked when both Charlie and Billy's voices rose to near shouting.

"It gets worse with age." Jake smiled, winking.

I chuckled.

Jake said he attended school on the reservation—which explained why I haven't met him yet. Forks High had a fairly small student body, and I was sure I knew all of the kids, if not by name then by face at the very least. He told me about a friend from his school that he liked go surfing with.

"We usually go surfing near First Beach. You should come." Jake told me earlier about First Beach, his favorite place to surf. The place sounded wonderful, but I couldn't imagine how anyone could enjoy surfing in this climate. To me, surfing came hand in hand with sun, heat, and sand. Frist Beach, while sounding very beautiful, had none of those.

Jake shrugged again and said, "I never get cold," as if that explained everything.

"You should come down to La Push sometime. I'll show you how the other half lives," he said with a smirk.

Just then, the microwave beeped, indicating that the popcorn was ready. I went to the fridge to take out a bottle of coke and asked Jake to take out a bowl and two glasses from the cupboard. He handed me the coke when they first came in, earlier this evening. He said, "That's for us _kids_ ," winking, "while those old guys drink their _beer_." He made a face, clearly showing his disgust, and made me laugh for the first in many times tonight.

When we turned to go to the living room—me holding the bowl in one hand and the bottle in the other, and Jake carrying a glass in each hand—I pulled a classic Bella maneuver and came down crashing.

That is how I ended up in the ER for the second time in less than a month.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

I drowned myself in work and books, hoping that keeping my mind busy would stop me from losing my rational thinking. I took longer shifts in the hospital, pulling doubles as often as I could without arousing suspicion. When I wasn't working, I read every book or medicine magazine I could get my hands on—and there were plenty. However, spending time alone inside the house proved useless. My mind began to play tricks on me. Sometimes when I walked past one of the rooms in the house, I could swear that I saw someone in the room. The feeling was like a déjà vu, and it was maddeningly annoying. I didn't know how humans dealt with such a phenomenon. Being a vampire meant that I possessed a photographic memory, having a déjà vu was impossible by the very definition of my nature. It was yet another symptom of my insanity.

At the end of the second week, when I was driving back from my shift at the hospital—another double—I just kept driving. I made my way to a small airfield north of Seattle, parked my Mercedes in the hanger, and boarded the small private jet. Four hours later, I landed the jet in Denali, Alaska.

I was met with a warm welcome from Eleazar and Carmen, my two good friends. I thought the company of others would do me good. I only planned to stay over for the weekend, as my next shift at the hospital was the Sunday night shift. A three-day stay with my closest friends ought to do help bring me out of my sudden depression.

I enjoyed my talks with Eleazar very much. We became acquainted two hundred years ago while we were both with the Volturi. Eleazar left them after finding his mate Carmen, and I followed him not too many years later. We remained friends until this day. He was a scholar and a very intelligent vampire, which made him an intriguing partner for conversation regardless of the topic.

Eleazar and I stayed in his library for the entire first day and night, catching up on the last fifty years since we had last seen each other in person. We went hunting together in the following morning, joined by Carmen, and for the first time in a month, I felt at peace.

However, the presence of the three other members of Eleazar and Carmen's family was a little less pleasant. Their three adopted daughters—Tanya, Irena, and Kate—were all beautiful women and they knew it. They inspired the original stories about the succubus, and although the three ladies preferred the warmth of human men when it came to their choice in bed partners, they did not pass on a chance to pursue male vampires if they found them to be attractive.

Unfortunately, I seemed to fall into that category. All three ladies made offers—as subtle as stripping inside a church on a Sunday morning—to all of which I had politely but firmly, refused. Tanya and Kate accepted my refusal with grace and let me be. Irena, however, was a different story. Whenever I was in the same room as her, she would find reasons to touch me and "accidentally" brush against me. If I took a stroll outside, she would find me and rub her body against me like a cat in heat. I'm embarrassed to admit that she even managed to grope me, very inappropriately, several times. The last straw was when I came back from a hunt earlier than the rest of them, and Irena was waiting for me in the guestroom, wearing nothing but a smile.

I offered a quick goodbye to Eleazar and Carmen—who walked into the house just as I was about to leave him a note—thanked them both for their hospitality, and said that I must be on my way. I knew that I didn't fool either of them—they were well aware of their daughter's attempts—but they wished me a safe journey and promised to keep in touch without mentioning the .

I came back to Forks on Sunday, late in the afternoon, to start another workweek at the hospital. The time I spent in Denali was a nice break from the loneliness, but it was not enough. I continued taking as many shifts as I could and avoiding my own home as much as was possible. I hunted a little more often, running as far as the Canadian border in some nights. As the week progressed, I felt anxious for reasons I could not explain. I felt as though I was waiting for something to happen, or for someone to arrive. I didn't know which.

I began avoiding some of the rooms in my house like a plague. The images I would see when I passed through them were too disturbing. The first floor was the worst; it was the only floor I could not avoid completely. Not only were the flickering images still there, but I began hearing sounds. Most of the time it was the sound of a non-existent piano playing, but I also heard glass shattering, footsteps, and even laughter. I began to think that the house was simply haunted—It was better than thinking I had developed a mental illness, and about just as plausible.

My shift on Friday began at six in the evening. It was one of the quietest ones I'd had in the two years I spent living in Forks. It was both good—because it meant that there were less injured humans, and bad—because my mind wasn't kept busy and began to wonder. I decided to do the human thing and linger around the break room. It was a perfectly normal place to be in on a quiet Friday night. However, there was no one there, so after a few minutes of sitting there alone, I made my way back to the ER.

I heard the doors to the ER open and recognized the Chief's heavy footsteps walking through the doors. They were heavier than usual and I suspected that he was carrying the person he had brought in his arms. I listened as the nurse instructed him to take whomever it was that he brought in to room number one. I felt my pager vibrate at the same time as I heard Chief Swan's footsteps leaving the front desk.

It took me a minute longer to reach the ER. The halls were empty but I did not dare move in my regular speed in the hospital. By the time I reached Nurse Grace Lloyd in the front desk, Chief Swan was standing alone, filling out forms.

"Chief Swan, Grace," I greeted them as I approached. "How may I be of a service this evening?"

"Isabella cut herself on a piece of glass. It looked deep so I brought her in," the Chief explained.

"She's in room one," Grace informed me.

"I'll go see her right now."

I put on my gloves and entered the room were Isabella—no, not Isabella; she preferred Bella—was lying on the bed. She had a white kitchen towel wrapped around her right hand and I could smell fresh blood. It made her scent more concentrated. I could not explain why, but her scent reminded me of waterfalls and wild flowers. I noticed it on her first visit, but with her blood exposed, the scent was much more potent.

"Bella?" I called as I came closer. I learned that humans were more comfortable when they could hear the person approaching them. The girl seemed even paler than normal. Her eyes were closed, but I could hear her rapid heartbeat and shallow breaths and knew she was awake.

"Dr. Cullen?" Her eyes opened in surprise. She tried to smile and failed.

"Why don't you tell me what happened to you?" I suggested, pulling a stool on wheels and sitting next to her right side.

She let me take her right hand before she spoke, "I stumbled on something, probably my own feet." An embarrassed expiration crossed her face before she continued, "My friend had two glasses in his hands and I fell on him."

I removed the towel from her hand, doing my best to be gentle. I noticed her wince several times. The cloth stuck to the coagulated blood, and when I had to remove it, she began to bleed again. I saw her face turn green and knew she was about to be sick. I acted on instinct and brought a trashcan from the entrance of the room under her face, for her to throw up in. When she was finished, I handed her a paper towel to wipe her face and a cup of water.

"Thank you," she murmured.

"Did you hit your head when you fell?" She might have sustained another concussion.

"No, it's the blood. I hate the smell of it," she said, still a little green. "It makes me feel sick"

This girl was so unexpected. The humans I had met during my long years of existence could not detect the scent of blood. I couldn't help the smile that came to my lips. "Well, it's a good thing, then, that it does not have that effect on me," I said.

I pulled a sterile cloth and placed it under her hand. I went to the cabinet and took the equipment I will need to treat her. "Is your friend ok?" I asked when I came to sit next to her.

"Yes, Jake is ok. He only dropped the glasses; I did the falling" She smiled sheepishly, but her face still had a green tint to it. I cleaned her hand with alcohol soaked gauze, and once the scent of blood was drenched in the scent of alcohol, she looked much better. "I landed straight on the pile of broken glass..."

"Hence the cuts," I finished with a smile. I can't say what it was about her, but this human just had this effect on me; she was able to make me smile even when I was certain that I was at a new low in my life. I looked back down on her hand. There were some small cuts and several deep ones that will need stitches, but first I had to take out all of the glass shards that were still in the wounds.

I picked up the syringe with the anesthetic and saw her blanch. "Needles," she said.

"I need to pick the pieces of glass out of your arm," I explained, "and some of the cuts will require stitches as well." I saw her grimace at the word 'stitches', _I guess she doesn't like them any more than she likes needles_. "It will be easier for you if you concentrate on something else," I suggested.

"Like what?"

"Why don't you tell me about your friend?"

"There isn't much I can say about him," she said sheepishly. "I know that we used to play together when I was little, but I don't remember much"

I noticed her wince when I gave her the anesthetic and began to work on taking out the shards of glass, but she continued to talk while I worked.

"He is Billy's son. Billy is my dad's best friend. They used to go finishing every weekend for as long as I can remember. Billy was in a car accident a few years ago and he's in a wheelchair now, so they don't get to go fishing anymore…"

I could hear the sadness in her voice when she spoke of her father's friend. Such compassion was rare amongst both our kinds.

"They came over to watch a game with us tonight. I guess I kind of ruined their plans…"

I glanced up at her face, she sounded so guilty that it surprised me. "I'm sure they are not mad at you," I said, but ended in a questioning note. _Surely, they aren't so stupid as to blame her._

"No, no," she assured me hastily, "but I still feel a little guilty"

"You have nothing to feel guilty about. It's not your fault. It could happen to anyone." The moment the words left my mouth, everything suddenly changed. I was no longer in a hospital room, but in my kitchen back home. Bella was still sitting in front of me, but she wasn't on top of a hospital bed but on the heavy kitchen table. The image lasted no longer than a mere second, not long enough for her to notice anything, but it was long enough to shake me to my core. I heard her speak again, and her words were like another impossible déjà vu.

" _Could,_ " she repeated, "but it usually just happens to me."

I did my best to behave as normally as possible for the rest of her treatment, but it was challenging, keeping those feelings of shock and disbelieve at bay. I finished stitching her cuts and then gathered the dirty gauze and everything else I had used, wrapping it in the sterile cloth from under her hand. When I approached the biohazard trashcan to throw everything away, I had a weird feeling that I should be using a crystal bowl instead, and burning everything rather than throwing it in the trash. Bella Swan remained silent while I placed a piece of clean gauze over her wounds and taped it securely in its place, but I felt her gaze on me, watching throughout the whole time.

"This ought to do it…" The words fell of my lips. It was as though I was reading from a script that I wasn't even aware I had memorized.

"Thank you, Dr. Cullen," she said quietly.

"You're welcome, Bella," I replied.

I walked out of the room right after that. I gave a nod to Chief Swan in the waiting room and let him know he can take his daughter home, but for the rest of my shift, I was operating on autopilot, barely aware of my surroundings. It was a very good time to have a vampire mind that was able to focus on several different things at once. It was also a good time to have a slow shift.

I sat in my study for the remainder of the night. There was a question that kept echoing inside my mind. It was not the only question I had—far from it—but it was the loudest one.

_What is going on here?_

* * *

****

I'm sure all of you caught the references to the books (New Moon, right after Bella's disastrous birthday party). If you didn't—go back and read the saga! ASAP!

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	3. Suspicion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

"Bella, I'm so sorry. Please let me make it up to you," Jake pleaded over the phone.

"It wasn't your fault," I said for the gazillion-th time. " _I_ was the one who bumped into _you_. I should be the one apologizing."

"Well, in that case, you should make it up to me and come to La Push today." I could hear the smile in his tone. "I'll show you around First Beach, meet the guys..."

"I'm sorry, Jake," I said with honest regret in my tone. I really did want to see First Beach and hang out with him, I was sure it could be a lot of fun, but I had already promised to go with the girl to Port Angeles. "I already have plans for this afternoon. I'd love to come some other time. Maybe—"

"What plans?" Jake cut me off, his tone suddenly urgent.

"I'm going to Port Angeles with Jessica and Angela." It came out sounding almost like a question, probably because I was indeed wondering why he cared so much about my plans.

"Oh, OK," he said, and I have could swear I heard him sigh with relief. "Any special occasion?" he asked it in a very nonchalant way that was just a little _too_ nonchalant.

I wondered why I felt as though his question was much more than a simple query from a friend about another friend's plans, but decided to reply anyway. "Yes, actually," I said. "The girls are going dress shopping for the spring dance, and I'm tagging along."

"Are you going to the dance?"

There it was again, that urgency in his tone. "No. Do I need to remind you how much of a klutz I am?" I teased, trying my best to keep the conversation light.

"No, you don't." Jake chuckled. "I got a first row seat on the last time your inner klutz made an appearance."

I knew he was teasing me, and it was not like I wasn't joking about it myself, but for some reason, his words stroke a nerve. "Anyway, I have to go now. Jessica is picking me up in a few minutes."

"Ok. Call me when you get back?"

_What's with all the questions today?_

"Sure," I said, my tone annoyed even to my own ears. "Have fun with the guys."

"Have fun with the _girls_ ," Jake replied.

 _Okay, I know I didn't imagine his emphasis on that last word!_ "I'll do my best. Bye." I was eager to end this conversation.

"Bye, Bells." He hung up.

I frowned as I put the receiver back in its place. Why would Jake call me 'Bells'? The only one who called me by that nickname was Charlie, and even that was pretty rare, so I was fairly certain that Jake didn't get a chance to hear it. It was odd.

_Speaking of odd..._

I wondered what happened to Dr. Cullen the other day. I wouldn't have noticed the change in his behavior if I hadn't been watching him so close, and I wouldn't have been watching him so closely if he weren't stitching my arm at that moment. However, he was stitching, so I was watching...and so I did notice. It was a very minute change, but once I saw it—it felt huge. He just detached himself, as if something I said or did reminded him of something and he just sank in the memory and never came up. _Major odd..._

w.W.w

**Jacob**

I had a bad feeling ever since Bella mentioned having plans for this afternoon. I couldn't explain why I had it or what it was about, but something wasn't right. _She's just going to Port Angeles with the girls_ , I kept telling myself, _just the girls. You have nothing to worry about_. But that was just it—I felt like there _was_ something to worry about.

_The girls..._

_The dresses..._

_Port Angeles..._

_The Dance..._

_Books..._

_Port Angeles...That's it! Port Angeles._

I froze in the middle of the living room, where I had been pacing for the past thirty minutes. I knew that my bad feeling had something to do with Port Angeles. The only thing I could think of was that there was something bad about to happen to Bella tonight in Port Angeles. I didn't know why I was so anxious suddenly. I mean, the girl was accident prone like no one I had ever known, but there were just too many options for something to go wrong.

_I can just go, check up on her, and leave. She doesn't even have to know that I was there._

I took the keys to my dad's pick-up and stormed outside. The possibilities running through my head as I started the car.

_She could get hit by a car...She could twist her ankle...She could walk into a glass door..._

I turned to the highway and hit the gas, pushing the car to its limit.

_She could get lost...She could stumble into a hole or a drainage pipe..._

I was driving way too fast, I knew that, but the sense of urgency was increasing with every second that passed. I was out of Forks' city limits within minutes, my mind still running every possible scenario in my thoughts.

_She could slip on a mud puddle while walking in the street and break something...She could get bitten by a stray dog and get rabies..._

I saw the lights of Port Angeles, it was dusk and the street lamps were already on. My mind was still racing through all the possibilities, and they were getting more farfetched with each one.

_She could stumble over her own feet and fall onto the road and get hit by a bus..._

Okay, so maybe I was letting my imagination run wild on me, but I knew that there was nothing imaginary about Bella falling.

I sped up, going well over seventy-five miles per hour. _She could get lost,_ I thought as I drove into Port Angeles. Bella didn't know the city too well and she had a very poor sense of direction, getting lost was definitely a possibility.

I scanned the faces of the people on the street, but I couldn't see her anywhere. _Bella said that she was going dress shopping with her girlfriends, so I shouldn't be worried about her getting lost_ , I tried to convince myself.

 _Yeah, Bella dress shopping...she's more likely to go to a book store and meet her friends later, rather than sit on a bench and wait for them to pick out dresses for a dance that she wasn't even attending._ There was a very good book store in Port Angeles, and I knew that Bella would be tempted. So, if she decides to go find the store—she might get lost... _and she might go in the wrong direction, end up in a bad part of town—and walk into a really bad crowd. Hell, with Bella's luck—there will be a rapist on the loose and she will walk right into him_.

The thought sent chills down my spine.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

Monday was sunny. Normally, this would not have bothered me—I always made sure to work the evening or night shift on sunny days, and Monday was no different, but I was restless all through the day for no apparent reason. My every instinct screamed over the slow pace of the time. I needed to be out of the house, I could not understand _why_ , but the need was too basic for me to ignore it.

I started the car at the very moment the sun set. I no longer had the excuse of sunlight to keep me inside the house.

I was in Port Angeles less than thirty minutes later.

Allowing my instincts to lead me, I drove into the city streets. My rational mind was on suspense from the second I left my driveway.

I parked the car near the harbor and continued on foot. There was very little traffic around me, both on the sidewalks and on the road. I walked into the warehouse area, not the best place in town to be in after nightfall, but no matter what or who lay ahead, I was still the most dangerous creature around.

I heard several men talking, but I was still too far to decipher the humming tones into individual words. I kept to the shadows as I walked towards the men, listening carefully. The wind changed course and I realized two things at once. The men were intoxicated and they were not alone. The sour scent of alcohol and sweat mixed with a scent of wild flowers that was very familiar to me for some reason. My mind was working through my memories to realize what that scent reminded me while still listening to the conversation.

"There you are!" one of the men exclaimed.

"Yeah, we just took a little detour," another replied.

"Stay away from me," a female voice warned.

_Bella!_

The scent and the voice connected in my mind at the same time. I jumped to the nearest rooftop and made my way to the men as quickly as I could. I heard tires squeal and a different male voice command, "Get in!"

I reached the rooftop just above the men and saw Bella get inside a pickup truck, the driver standing in front of her in a protective stance. I examined her face. She seemed relieved. Apparently, she knew the driver.

I was pleased to see them leave. I did not want Bella anywhere near that kind of crowd. I stayed in my hideout listening to the men below me talk while they drove away.

"Damn, we almost had her!" one of the men said.

"And such a tender young thing...could have been quite a ride," another man agreed.

"Cut it out, you two. We'll just have to find us another toy to play with this evening," said a third man, clearly the leader of this pathetic gang.

I felt the rage within me as I took in their words, and the meaning of those words. The beast within me was wide-awake now. I detest violence. I avoid it as much as possible, but to hear these men talk about hurting another girl, about hurting Bella...The fury was clouding my mind. I was raised as a gentlemen, I could not allow lowlifes like these creatures to harm another soul.

The predator within me began to strategize while the human side of me tried to rein in the beast. There were four men in total. I could smell the alcohol in their breath and coming from the cans that two of them were holding. It would be easy enough to knock them unconscious. They would not even have time to see me coming. I could leave them near a police station and make an anonymous call to tip them off. As much as the predator wanted to kill them, the doctor refused to take a life.

I waited for a few more minutes, scanning my surroundings to make sure no one was within hearing range, and then jumped down. I landed silently behind two of the men and hit them on the back of their heads, rendering them unconscious immediately. Before the others could notice, I grabbed them by their throats, cutting off their air supply just long enough for them to pass out as well. _I will not leave them this close to home_ , I decided, it would draw too much attention. I would take two and leave them in Olympia, and then cross the border to Oregon and leave the other two in Portland.

Three hours later, I was sitting in my living room, watching the news. The arrests made a small appearance just before the weather report, and the report only mentioned that the men that were arrested in Olympia were wanted criminals, suspected of several rapes and two murders. As far as I could see, no one made the connection to the other two I left in Portland. I was pleased.

w.W.w

**Bella**

I had nightmares that night. It was only to be expected, but I still woke up with a racing heartbeat and a cover of sweat over my body. My mind made very vivid pictures of what could have happened if Jake hadn't shown up when he did.

The thought of Jake made me smile. After picking me up, he took me to dinner in a small restaurant, doing everything he could to make sure I was okay. The girls had already eaten by the time I caught up with them, so Jake offered to drive me home. He was so sweet and caring that it took me by surprise. I was so used to taking care of others that the experience was new to me.

I lay back on my pillows and glanced at the clock on my nightstand. Three am _. I might as well try and get a few more hours of sleep_. Jessica's expression promised I would be grilled in school, and I wondered how long it would take her to lose interest after I told her that Jake is a year younger than me.

I got my answer before school even started. Jessica waited for me—holding the jacket that I left yesterday in her car—under the shelter of the cafeteria roof's overhang. I had to smile when I saw she was so eager that she could hardly stay still.

"Tell me _everything_!" she commanded as soon as I was within hearing range.

"What do you want to know?" I asked as innocently as I could manage.

"What happened last night?"

"He bought me dinner, and then he drove me home." I shrugged. "That's all." I hid a smile.

"Was it like a date?"

"No, I was actually very surprised to see him," I said truthfully and she frowned. It was very easy to see when I was lying, so she could not deny that I was telling the truth.

"So, are you going to see him again? Are you two going out again?" There was something very familiar about our conversation. It was like we were both reading lines from a book we knew by heart.

"Jess, I'm not dating Jake," I said. It was time to put an end to the romantic fantasies Jessica was weaving in her mind. "He's the son of my father's best friend. I've known him since I was three years old. So, of course I'm going to see him again, but I'm _not_ dating him."

"That can always change, you know."

"He's a year younger than me, Jess, and he's just a friend."

"Oh." I saw her entire demeanor change in response. We walked in silence for a few moments, while she was thinking about what I said.

"So, how was dinner with Mike?" I asked, knowing that this was the best way to divert the conversation away from the subject of my love life. It worked, and for the rest of the day Jessica analyzed to me every move Mike had made during their dinner date.

w.W.w

I went down to La Push on Thursday evening. Charlie was going over to Billy's for another game, and I thought it was a good chance to hang out with Jake and meet his friends. They had a small fire near the beach with all the La Push kids around it. I got to meet Seth and his sister, Leah; Sam and his girlfriend, Emily; and Jake's friends—Quil, Paul, and Embry.

Surprisingly, I had really enjoyed myself. Emily reminded me of Angela, and she was also new to the tribe, so we quickly connected. She was Leah's cousin, and I could see some tension when she spoke of Leah. It was later, while I talked to Jake that he gave me the whole story. I couldn't help but feel bad for both sides. I could not deny the connection that Sam and Emily shared, and I'm sure Leah wasn't blind. But I also saw the pain in Leah's eyes when she glanced at either Emily or Sam, she may have put on a brave face but I could see that she was hurting.

The boys—Quil, Seth and Embry—were all younger than Jake was, and thus younger than me as well, but they were so funny when they fooled around with Jake and with one another that I didn't mind being the oldest in the bunch. They even attempted to include me at some point, but quickly backed down when I showed them the stitches in my arm, explaining that it was a result of me trying to walk on a perfectly leveled floor. I was dubbed the official klutz of the tribe. When I tried to object—saying that I was not even a member of the tribe—they said that I was an honorary member from now on, and I just had to laugh.

"But she's not an official tribe member until she hears the old legends," Quil joked.

"What old legends?" I asked, intrigued.

"It's just a bunch of old ghost stories." Paul shrugged, seemingly uninterested.

"Oh, come on, Paul, we have the best setting for a scary story," Seth begged, pointing first to the fire we were sitting around and then to the darkness surrounding us.

"I'd love to hear them," I said, looking at Jake, but he was looking at Sam, as if asking for permission. _How odd._

"Why don't you tell her about the spirit warriors?" Sam suggested. "I don't think Quil and Embry heard that one, either."

"You're a better storyteller than I am," Jake protested. "Why don't you tell the story?"

"Okay."

Sam took a deep breath as he put his hand around Emily's shoulders and rubbed her arm gently in an affectionate gesture that testified to a very intimate relationship. I was curious to see Emily holding a spiral-bound notebook and a pen. I thought she looked exactly like a student set for an important lecture.

"The legends of the Quileutes go centuries back to a time where history was not written, but told from father to son. One story speaks of the spirit warriors," Sam began. His voice was very quiet, just above whisper. It was perfect for setting the mood. "The Quileutes have been a small people from the beginning, and we are a small people still, but we have never disappeared. It is said that this is because there has always been magic in our blood." Sam glanced over the faces of everyone sitting around the fire. I saw that they were all absolutely fascinated, everyone but Jake that is. It felt as though he had already heard the story several times over because he was studying my face intensely, rather than staying focused on Sam.

"This is a story from the early days when the Quileutes first came to these shores. We were ship builders and fishermen, living of the sea. The tribe was small and the harbor was rich in fish. But there were others who coveted our lands. A large tribe moved against us and we had to take our ships to escape them . . ."

I sat there, captivated, listening to the story about ancient warriors, sharing a body with a wolf, and the survival of one small tribe through outside and inside threats.

". . . and this is how the magic first came to our people." Sam finished the story, and I felt as though I was suddenly pulled back to reality. From a world of legends, I came back to the small circle of teenagers sitting around the dying fire. I was absolutely enchanted. The legend was beautiful, and Jake was right—Sam was a good storyteller.

When it was time to go back home, Jake walked me to my car while Charlie got inside the cruiser.

"It wasn't a scary story at all," I told him. "I wish they could teach history in high school like that—in the form of stories around a burning fire"

Jake chuckled. "I know what you mean".

"Well, thank you for inviting me, I had a great time."

"You're welcome. I had enjoyed your company myself."

There was an awkward moment then. I stood next to my truck, Jake held the door open for me, and we both paused, looking at each other. I felt the tension building. I knew what it meant and I didn't really know how to respond. I didn't think of Jake in that way—he was more like the brother that I never had, rather than a love interest.

"Bella, are you going to stand next to your truck for much longer?" Charlie's question almost made me jump, but at least it broke the tension.

"I'll be right behind you," I answered him and then looked back at Jake. "Thanks again."

"You're welcome, Bella," Jake said. He waited until I climbed up to my seat, and then he closed the door behind me. "Have a safe ride."

"I will."

I went straight to bed as soon as I got home. I was only half-awake when I brushed my teeth, and the moment my head hit the pillow I fell into a deep sleep.

Friday after school, I went up to my computer and got online. The story Sam told us last night was so beautiful that I was wondering if there were others as well. I was surprised to find very little in the legends department. Most websites had very short summaries of the story Sam told us last night, and nothing more.

Finally, just when I was about to give up on the whole idea, I found an old website—one that had a last update dating around three years ago—that contained a link to another story; the website called it "The legend of the Cold Ones".

I clicked on the link, hoping that it was still alive. The story took almost five minutes to load, and was much shorter than the one from last night.

" _The legend of The Cold Ones accompanies the Quileutes from their early days as a tribe. The story began with young women disappearing from around the lands of the Quileutes and the neighboring tribes. When warriors were sent to search the woods for the women, only one came back. The warrior told of a beautiful man, very pale and very strong, with red eyes and sharp teeth. He told the elders that when they found the man, he held the body of one of the girls that had disappeared, his mouth was on her neck, and he was drinking her blood. The warrior spoke of a fight in which he lost all of his brothers, barely coming back alive himself._

_The warrior carried something that the elders had never seen before—a strange, cold corpse that was torn in pieces. He laid the pieces to be examined by the elders. They were as tough as stone and absolutely white. When two of the pieces touched, the body began to reassemble itself. Panicked, the elders quickly set the pieces on fire and the body was destroyed._

_They called it The Cold One, the Blood Drinker, and lived in fear that it was not alone._

I scrolled down, looking for the rest of the story, only to find that there was none.

I searched for two more hours, trying to find more about the legends but there was nothing more. I wondered if I should call Jake and ask him for the rest of the story, but I felt silly. Why was I so captivated by it? It's just an old legend, nothing more.

I gave up when I heard Charlie's cruiser park in front of the house.

"Bella?" he called from downstairs. It was irritating, who else would it be? It wasn't like there was anyone else living in the house.

"I'm up here, Dad."

"Weren't you supposed to go to the hospital, to get your stitches removed?" he asked.

"Yeah, I was just getting ready to leave."

I quickly put on my shoes, picked up my jacked and ran downstairs. I completely forgot about that!

"Slow down, Bells," Charlie called from the living room, his tone amused, "or you'll need more stitches." He chuckled.

"Ok, Dad." I rolled my eyes and opened the front door. "I won't be long. I'll make dinner when I come back."

"Ok, have fun. Drive carefully."

"I will, Dad."

w.W.w

I watched Dr. Cullen as he was taking my stitches out. He looked so pale under the fluorescent lighting, even paler than I, the albino, was. His hands felt cold, even though he was wearing gloves. I glanced at his eye color, trying to be inconspicuous about it. They were very dark, almost black. _How odd..._ I remembered them being golden, not black. I watched his movements carefully. It was almost like a dance. Every motion of his body was so smooth and graceful that any ballerina would kill to be able to move like that.

I thought about the last time I was sitting in front of him. It was just last week. I was feeling so sick that I didn't register his movements when he brought me the trash can to throw up in, but now I wondered if it was really the nausea that made me miss his movements, or if it was something else. Could it be that he was moving _too fast_ for me to _see_?

I shook my head, trying to shake away my thoughts. I spent too much time reading about vampires and other mythical creatures this afternoon. I was imagining things that weren't there.

Or was I?

 _Come on, Bella! You know vampires don't exist!_ I scolded myself. Besides, if he _were_ a vampire, why would he be working in a hospital—where he would have to come in contact with human blood every single day? It would be like having an alcoholic working in a liquor store, or something.

"You are very quiet today," Dr. Cullen remarked, his head bowed over my arm.

"Just thinking," I replied vaguely. It was embarrassing enough that I was _thinking_ about vampires, speaking about it out loud would lead me straight to a padded cell.

"Looks serious," he commented.

"It's not, really. Just some old stories I heard last night..." I swear I saw him stiffen for a moment. _What was that all about?_

"Old stories?" The tone of his voice was almost indifferent, but I sensed some undercurrents that I couldn't quite understand what they were.

"Yes, I was down at La Push last night. The Quileute boys told me some of their tribe's legends," I said, choosing my words carefully and watching his every reaction. He didn't look up. His hands were working on the last stitch now. He made a humming sound, but something about it was just false. "I think they were trying to scare me, but I don't believe in ghost stories..." I would have missed the slight movement of his shoulders, the relief in his posture, if I weren't looking for it, "...or vampire stories" I finished, and he froze again. It lasted only a fraction of a second, but it was like a neon light for me.

Well what do you know, Dr. Cullen believes in vampire stories?

* * *

**The Quileutes legends mentioned in this chapter are from the book "Eclipse", chapter 11 "Legends".**

**Thank you all for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	4. Where is Everybody?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Carlisle**

I wanted to kick myself, and although it was actually possible for me to do so from a physical standpoint, I thought it wasn't worth the pain of tearing off a limb and reattaching it later. Besides, I was drawing enough attention as it was, I reminded myself. Who knew that a human could be so perceptive? And who knew that I could be such an idiot? I froze just in front of her! If it was anyone other than Bella, I could have hoped that they might not notice, but with her standing not two feet away from me, I might as well have put on a bloody billboard! The girl was so much more perceptive than the rest of the humans I had come across in my long years that I had to be much more careful around her. I took comfort in the fact that I had managed to send her home without stuttering, even though that took more effort than it should have.

The following months were blissfully uneventful in regards to Bella, but in regards to everything else—they were anything but uneventful. Five hikers went missing during that time, but only two bodies were recovered. I was called to examine the bodies and determine the cause of death after each one was found, so I could no longer deny that I had company in the area—company that went by the traditional vampire diet and was dangerously sloppy. Not good.

A part of me was hoping that they would move on from this area before their sloppiness could cause more trouble, but time proved me wrong. The loss of human lives was taking its toll on me, and my already-down mood was getting to the clinically depressed level. Both their sloppiness and my mental state would begin to draw too much attention very soon, and too much attention meant that I would be forced to leave the area much earlier than I had planned. I was brooding over that possible outcome when another had struck me—the Volturi! If things get bad enough, I had no doubt that Aro will sent a crew to 'clean the mess', as he referred to it. I did not want to move and I did not want a visit from the Volturi. As much as I would have been glad to see Aro, I would have preferred it to be under a different set of circumstances.

I made an attempt to find the visitors myself, in hopes that a simple explanation would be enough to make them leave the area. I also tried to determine how many of them there were. Vampires are mostly nomadic creatures that travel alone or in pairs, but judging by the number of casualties, I knew that there must be more than two. Three was possible; four was extremely rare. Either way, I would be outnumbered, so my only hope was that diplomacy would work.

I thought about calling Eleazar, just to have even numbers, but I did not want to involve him in this. Besides, there was no reason for them to attack me, no reason to think that they will refuse to listen—every vampire who has lived long enough had heard about the Volturi and the laws of our world, although sloppy, their handiwork did not strike me as that of a newborn. So I tried tracking them down. I followed their scent from the nearby forests all the way to Spokane where the trail went cold. I reached the southern border with Oregon and the northern border with Canada—but I found nothing in either direction.

It was late May when I sat in a large clearing not too far from my home and contemplated my next course of action. It had been over two months since the disappearance of the first hiker, but I was no closer to finding the rouge vampires now, than I was in the middle of March. I was at a standstill, and, for the first time in years, I had no idea what to do.

During the passing weeks, this clearing had become a place where I came to when I wanted to think. In the past, I had used my study for that, but these days it was no longer the haven it used to be. With all the images and sounds haunting me in the house I was unable to relax anywhere within its walls.

I sat on a boulder overlooking the clearing and let my mind drift for a while. Many thoughts ran through my mind. I did my best not to let myself wallow in my loneliness and instead think about a way to find the visiting vampires and deal with them, before another life is taken. I was completely lost in thought when I was suddenly pulled out of my reverie by my most basic instinct—self-preservation. A gust of wind blew, and a new scent filled my nostrils. It was the scent that I had been tracking for the past two months, only much more concentrated. They were close. I jumped from the boulder to my feet in time to see three figures emerging from the forest, approaching the clearing from the north—two males and one female. The male in front had long dreadlocks and his dark-olive skin tone hinted towards a southern origin. The two vampires behind him were clearly mates. The male was blond and the tallest of the three while the woman had waves of bright red hair and a cat-like manner to her movements.

Even with the large distance between us, I could easily see that all three of them had bright crimson eyes. I had found the vampires I was looking for, or rather—they had found me.

I watched as they approached, keeping a relaxed posture despite having every inch of my body protesting it. Every single fiber told me to drop into a crouch in a defensive position. There is no 'fight or flight' instinct in a vampire's mind—there is only 'fight'. Only the long years of practicing self-restraint allowed me to keep my stance.

The trio walked through the field, their manner was calm and they did not appear to be aggressive. But looks can be deceiving, as I knew well, so I was prepared for anything.

Suddenly, when they were in the middle of the field, they stopped cold in their tracks, and the looks on their faces became those of fear, complete and utter terror.

I nearly gasped. Apparently, I was ready for _almost_ anything.

The three still figures were staring in my direction. I briefly wondered at what could scare them like that before deciding to turn around and look for myself. I did not want to look away from the danger in front of me, but there seemed to be something much more dangerous behind me.

Two yellow-eyed vampires stood ten feet behind me.

_Two Yellow-eyed vampires! Ten feet!_

The two facts were both calming and frightening at the same time, and in my vampire mind, I had no problem feeling both feelings without contradiction. The two were male and female. The male was covered with numerous scars, _battle marks_. My mind registered the danger emanating from the male, while still marveling at their eyes. Their eyes were golden yellow, like the color of melted gold.

_Where are they from? How did they come to embrace my style of diet? What are they doing here?_

I had many more questions, but they would have to wait. I still had a very big problem behind me. As soon as I realized that the real danger was once again behind me, I turned my head back. The trio was still petrified, frozen in the middle of the field.

"Leave. Now." The menacing tone came from the golden-eyed male before I was able to speak.

The blond nomad was the first to break off from the terror-imposed stealth. "Why don't you make me leave?" he hissed.

"We did not come here to fight," I stated, trying to avoid violence. The air was filled with so much tension that it was almost palpable.

"Then you came here to _die_!" The nomad charged forward.

The two golden-eyed vampires reacted quickly, and before I even had the chance to act, they already had the blond male and redhead female in a deadly clutch. I was left staring in the crimson red eyes of the third nomad. He was crouched in a defensive position but he did not try to attack me. The telltale sounds of screeching metal and the vampiric peripheral vision told us both that his friends were losing, and fast.

"I did not come here to fight," I repeated. "If you do not attack me, I have no reason to harm you."

He was still crouched but he nodded, accepting my offer.

"I _do_ have a question for you..." he trailed off in a questioning manor.

I nodded, signaling him to continue.

"Why is it that your eyes are in a different color?" he asked slowly.

"I do not feed off of humans," I answered. His eyes widened in shock, and I could not help the chuckle that escaped my lips. "I feed off animal blood."

"I am ...curious." He rose from his crouch, clearly captivated by this new fact. "Does it taste the same as human blood?"

He seemed completely oblivious to the sound of his coven members being torn apart just a few feet away from him, dismembered by my two golden-eyed visitors.

"I wouldn't know," I replied truthfully. "I have never tasted human blood."

His mouth did not drop, but I sensed that it took some effort on his side to avoid doing so.

"In my three hundred years I have not met a vampire who was not a newborn and did not know the taste of human blood." His eyes glistened with real interest.

The purple smoke rising to the sky and the smell of burning vampire did not seem to even register with him. The ties of his coven were apparently based on nothing more than comfort.

"It is not an easy way of life, but it allows me to retain a permanent residence, rather than wonder around homeless," I explained.

An idea came to me at that moment, but before I was able to say anything, the little black-haired female came to my left and spoke.

"Send him to the Denali clan. They will be able to teach him our diet."

I looked at her in wonder. How did she know about them? Was she a friend of the Denalis? Possibly, someone Eleazar never mentioned to me? There were many questions that I had wanted to ask her, but I felt that this was not the time.

"The Denali clan?" the nomad asked.

"Yes, they live north of here, in Alaska. They share my way of life and will be able to teach you, if you wish," I answered.

"I do."

I knew that the challenge will be welcomed by Eleazar, and then another thought crossed my mind. _Maybe the sisters will enjoy the new guest as well..._

"I will call to let them know you are on your way."

"Thank you." He bowed his head lightly.

"You are welcome. In the meantime, I will ask that you do not hunt within the two hundred mile radius of this clearing. Your coven's hunting activities have caused somewhat of a problem for us." I was not about to reveal to this stranger that the two vampires standing next to me where not a part of my coven, so I spoke in the plural.

"My apologies." He hung his head in shame. "We did not know that the land had been claimed."

"Apology accepted," I said. "When you reach the Denalis, tell them that Carlisle Cullen sent you."

He nodded again and began retreating. He did not turn his back until he was near the edge of the forest. Once there, he turned and broke in a sprint towards the trees. The two visitors standing next to me did not speak for a while. I suppose that like me, they were also waiting for the nomad to be out of hearing range.

We all stood there, perfectly still, for another five minutes before the female broke the silence with a hauling scream of my name, that were I human, would have caused me to jump a foot in the air.

"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?"

This little female was almost a foot and a half shorter than I, but the fury portrayed in her features made me feel as though _she_ was the one looking down at _me._

"What do you mean?" I asked, bewildered.

"Why on earth are you _alone_ here? Where is the rest of your family? Esme? Rosalie and Emmett? Edward? ANYONE?"

"Family?" Even this simple word sent jolts of pain through my body. There was nothing in this world that I would have liked to have more than a family. "I do not have a family. I do not know the people whose names you have just mentioned. I have never heard their names before."

She seemed even angrier at my words, if that were possible.

"He is telling the truth, darlin'," her mate spoke quietly.

The menace I heard in his tone when he spoke to the nomads was gone. Instead, his words were filled with concern and love for his partner. I felt a twitch of hurt inside me. A longing for a partner in this life that I had tried to burry for many years, was rising to the surface again.

"But how can it be?"

The faerie-like female's voice was little more than a whisper as she looked at her mate with a broken look in her eyes. She sounded so disheveled that I was filled with the desire to do anything in my power to make her feel better, only I did not know how.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked, genuinely concerned.

The male turned his head to look at me, his expression was carefully blank, but something about the gesture hinted that he was surprised.

"Darlin'?"

He turned to look at her and I thought that he was asking about more than just her wellbeing.

w.W.w

**Alice**

_This can't be happening! I am never wrong. NEVER. My visions might change, but I was never wrong! I may have been a bit off at times, but never completely wrong_.

The first thing I thought was that Carlisle was lying, but my mate confirmed my fears. Carlisle truly did not know them.

 _He had never even met them_.

I searched my vision, maybe it had changed. I saw once again the field in front of us, and Carlisle was standing there. The nomads were no longer in the field but the Cullens were still there, in complete formation. The vision was absolutely clear and firm. The only one who was a bit of a blur was Edward, just like in my original vision.

I was even more confused now.

_Could it be that I was simply wrong about the time?_

That did not make sense. The nomads were here, just as I had seen them in my previous version of this same vision. The sequence of events that had taken place just a few minutes ago was different from the one I saw in my vision, as well as the result. But it was to be expected, not being outnumbered made the nomads choose to attack rather than flee. Laurent, interestingly enough, made the same choice in truth as he did in my original vision. I searched farther in his future, curious now, and saw him with an unknown female. It was a blurred image, meaning there were still more decisions waiting to be made.

But what did the rest mean? I searched again, this time searching my memory rather than my visions. I looked for the visions of Carlisle I had had years ago, sitting with Esme after her change was complete, telling her about his history and about Edward, his son, the first vampire he created back in 1918. Something obviously went wrong, and I needed some answers.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

I waited patiently, curiously watching as the eyes of the small female glazed over and over, as though she was looking for something that was not really there. I used the time to examine them a bit closer. She was very delicate. Her features were like those of a porcelain doll. Her mate was much taller than she was, and his posture was very protective.

I took in the scars on his skin. He was wearing a button-down shirt with sleeves that were rolled up to his elbows, showing very little of his skin, but it was enough. I saw crescent-shaped scars covering every inch of his skin, disappearing under the fabric of his shirt. His features were hard and sharp and he had an aura of a soldier around him.

"My name is Alice," she finally spoke, "and this is my husband, Jasper Whitlock."

I noticed that she used the human term, yet somehow it made sense.

"It is a pleasure to meet you both." I tilted my head in a light bow. "And thank you for your help."

As much as I hate seeing a life being taken, I knew that without their help, I would have been the one whose life would have ended today.

"If there is anything I can do for you, please do not hesitate to tell me." I owed them. "Maybe I could offer you a hot shower?" I suggested.

Their appearance spoke of a long time spent travelling, and I thought they might enjoy an opportunity to clean up, that was the least I could do.

"We would love that." She smiled, her face lightened and she reminded me once again of the fairies in the tales of the Irish people I had visited a century ago. _All she needs is a pair of wings_ , I thought.

"Then please, follow me."

I led them to my home. It seemed natural to me, as if I had done so many times before. I offered them the use of any bathroom they wished—there were plenty to choose from in the house. The male did not say anything more, but I did not think that it was because he was slow in thought or lacking an opinion. I felt that he was taking in the situation, weighing in his options, before making a decision. I respected that.

"I am sorry I cannot offer much in the clothes department," I apologized. "I only have male attire that will either be too big for you Mrs. Whitlock or too small for you Mr. Whitlock."

"Don't worry about that, Carlisle. And please, call me Alice," she said with another dazzling smile.

"Alice." I smiled back. "Take your time. I will meet you in the living room when you are finished, I am sure we have much to talk about."

"Yes we do," Alice agreed, and her tone turned serious again. "I have many questions for you, and I know you have some for us."

"I do," I admitted.

w.W.w

**Alice**

An hour and a long shower later, we came down to the living room on the first floor and sat on the couch. Carlisle sat in an armchair next to us.

"Let me tell you my story first," I started. "It will answer some of your questions." I saw that this was the best approach I could use to get the information I needed from him. "I do not remember anything from my human life, only darkness. My first memory was after I woke up to this life was of Jasper —"

I told him about my first years and about my talent. I spoke of the diner where I had waited for three nights for Jasper to walk in, and about my visions of Carlisle and his way of life.

"The only difference is that I saw you with others, members of your family." I anticipated his question and answered it before he spoke. "In my visions you had a wife—Esme, a son—Edward, and two more children—Rosalie and Emmett. You changed them all." I saw the panic in his eyes, and answered another unspoken question. "You only changed them because they were dying. You would never have done it if there was another way."

I watched him process the information. This was time to get some of _my_ answers.

"I know now that you did not change any of them. I don't know how that is possible, but apparently, somehow, I was wrong." I made a face, hating to admit that. "So I would like to ask you some questions, and then maybe we can get to the bottom of this."

"I will do my best to answer your questions," he said. "I would like to get to the bottom of this myself."

I thought that there was something more that he wanted to say, but it looked like he thought better of it. So I continued on to my first question.

"Can you tell me, please, where were you in the summer of 1918?"

"I was in New York."

I heard the hesitation in his reply, so I asked, "What is it?"

"It is interesting that you chose to ask me about that summer specifically."

"Why is that?"

"It was an odd time. I was working in a hospital in Chicago during the spring of 1918, but I left shortly before the end of May. I do not know what made me leave." He seemed embarrassed by that fact. "I only know that I felt an urge to leave Chicago in the middle of April, but by the end of May I could no longer resist it. I transferred to Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. Why are you asking about that summer specifically?"

"It's a little complicated to explain."

"I'm sure I can keep up."

 _I really hope you can_. "In one of my visions I saw you tell the story of how you came to change Edward. You said that you met him in a hospital in Chicago in the summer of 1918. He was dying from the Spanish Influenza, and you changed him."

"But I was not in Chicago that summer, so I could not have done that," he argued.

"I know," I agreed. "That is what puzzles me so much."

"Maybe ...you were mistaken?" he asked gently.

I could see that he didn't want to offend me. He was simply looking for a reasonable explanation. _Well, I'm sorry, but I don't have one of those available._

"I am never mistaken in my visions," I replied confidently. "They may have changed in the past, but they have always come true in the end. Let me explain how they work," I said before he could interrupt me. "I see visions of the future for as long as the people involved are on the track that leads to that future. The moment a decision changes—so does the future, and with that—my vision of it." I saw what he was going to say and continued before he spoke, "I saw that vision _after_ 1918\. I was changed two years _later_ , in 1920."

"Then how —?"

"I don't know." I was so frustrated. _How could I have seen visions of things that had never happened?_ I had never dealt with anything like that before.

"Can you tell me more about ...about the others?"

I saw the pain and longing in his eyes and felt a tug in my un-beating heart. I remembered very clearly what it was like before I had met Jasper, the loneliness. But I always knew that my life was meant to include him. Carlisle never even had that kind of hope.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

It was morbid curiosity on my part—I had to admit it, at least to myself. I wanted to hear about the family that she saw me having, even if none of it was real. It was not hard for me to believe that she was talented. I had met many talented vampires in my years with the Volturi.

It was hard to hear stories about what could have happened, but if nothing else, I could at least have this much.

"Esme was changed next. It was three years after Edward. She had jumped off a cliff. She had a very weak pulse and they took her straight to the morgue, where you found her.

Rosalie was the next one to join your family, you found her in New York. She was raped and abused, and then left for dead. At first, you hoped that she would be Edward's mate, but they were never anything more than a brother and a sister." Alice smiled.

I wondered what had made her smile, maybe some memory of a vision that she did not share. I did not stop to inquire further. _I will let her finish, and then ask for more._

"Rosalie found her soul-mate two years after she was changed. Emmett had been attacked by a bear and was mortally injured. She brought him to you, unsure of her ability to change him without killing him. You saved his life."

_A strange choice of words, 'saved his life', not one I would have thought to use when speaking of changing a human being._

"You and Esme treated all three of them as though they were your own children, loved them as such."

Her last words nearly crushed me. The knowledge that I will never be able to father a child was almost as hard as the loneliness. Hearing her speak of three people whom I have treated and loved like my own children and knowing that it had never happened, that somehow I had missed my chance—was the final blow.

"I think Carlisle needs a few minutes to himself." Those were the first words Jasper had said ever since they came inside the house. I glanced at him, for a moment I wondered how he knew that I wanted to be left alone for a while, to simply be with my thoughts. I must have been easy to read, or maybe he was simply guessing correctly.

"We will give you some time alone," Alice said to me, and then turned to Jasper. "Come with me, Jazz."

They walked out of the room and up to the second floor. I felt something very familiar about the sounds their footsteps on the floor above me. I saw more images as the sound of their footsteps grew farther away, to the space above the kitchen. Even though I felt shattered and lonelier then ever—there was something very right about the sound.

That was a nice change.

* * *

**No Bella this time. Don't worry, she will come back soon.**

**In the next chapter, you will get a peek inside the Volturi and meet some new characters as well as some old ones. It will also mark the change in rating, as it will contain some use of strong language and adult themes.**

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	5. Anne Toney

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

_June 20th, 1922_

**Tony**

Another year had passed.

My birthday, my _human_ birthday, was always an odd day for me. Most vampires considered the day of their change to be their birthday, but I always considered it to be the day of my death. After all, the date was written on a tombstone bearing my own name, so it was only fitting.

Humans see their birthdays as a rite of passage; it marks a change in their life. But being the never-changing-creature that I am, I saw no reason to commemorate the event.

Alec, of course, disagreed.

"You've been all doom and gloom for far too long. I'm taking you out tonight and I'm not taking 'no' for an answer!" he announced.

"How about 'get lost' for an answer?"

"Oh, don't be like that, man! It's your _birthday_ , we should PARTY! And I have just the right treat for you..." He wiggled his brow suggestively and I saw a female figure in his thoughts.

"A snack, Alec? Really?" I asked incredulously. Was that his idea of a celebration?

"You idiot, stop thinking with your gut and start thinking with your dick!" He scowled.

 _He's awfully slow, for someone so young_.

"I heard that! And I'm not interested," I said bluntly.

Alec had developed an interest lately, in _sleeping_ with his prey—before killing it. I failed to see the appeal.

_Maybe he walks the other side of the street..._

"What on earth is that supposed to mean?"

_Swimming against the current? Taking it like a man?_

I saw the amusement in his thoughts as he was painting a picture of a river and me swimming against the currents. I frowned and searched deeper in his thoughts, trying to find the meaning behind his words. Sometimes I could swear that Alec was speaking in a different language.

It took a few seconds longer, but eventually Alec showed me another image of me, but this time it was much more explicit. I was disgusted.

"Oh, God...that's gross!" I yelled, stepping away from him. I knew physical distance wouldn't affect how well I could hear and see his thoughts. It was an instinctual reaction. "I wish I was able to drink bleach, so that I could erase that image from my mind. It's disgusting!"

But it was only getting worse. He began putting different faces on the male figure he was envisioning me with.

I growled. "Alec, I'm warning you! Cut it out!" I spat through gritted teeth.

He just smiled, and teasingly began picturing Aro, then Felix and finally Demetri in his thoughts.

"Eh!" I wanted to throw up. Or break something...or someone...preferably Alec.

Knowing Aro wouldn't like the idea of Alec being disabled for a day or two while his body parts were reattaching themselves, I left the room before my resolve had the chance to falter.

I wandered around the gardens surrounding the castle. Thankfully, they were empty. I did my best to tune out all of the regular mumble of thoughts coming from the surrounding buildings. I wanted some peace and quiet. I sat down on the wall overlooking the hills of Volterra and watched the sun disappearing behind them. It was nearing the end of the day and the sunset was already coloring the sky in a reddish hue.

I was completely engrossed in the beauty of the sunset when my attention was suddenly drawn by a simple call of my name. It didn't matter that Aro wasn't anywhere near me or that he did not actually speak a loud. Hearing my name being called in his thoughts was just as good as tapping my shoulder when it came to getting my attention.

_It's meal time._

Meal time. Another odd time in my never-changing life.

No vampire was allowed to hunt within the Volterra city limits, including, and especially, the members of the Volturi guard. So our meals were 'delivered' to us. Honestly, I thought it took out all the point of hunting. We were all perfectly capable of running far enough away, hunting as much as we needed and then coming back, but that is the way Aro, Marcus and Caius preferred it, so we all complied.

I heard the jumble of thoughts before I smelled the sweet scent of human blood. There were nineteen humans walking across the halls that led to the main room. Heidi was in the lead and I could hear her voice instructing the crowed of sheep-like humans following her, to stay together.

I jumped down the wall and made my way to the hall. I listened to the echo of their footsteps in the hall, to the rhythm of their heartbeats as they slowly grew closer to me, and to their chatter—both the verbal and the mental. Although I tried to tune it all out, it was impossible to completely ignore their thoughts. It was always hard for me, being able to listen to the thoughts of our prey. It made them more... _human_ to me, more _real_.

I joined the rest of the guard just as the heavy wooden double doors opened at the front of the room. Heidi led the group inside.

"Nice fishing," Caius complimented, speaking too fast for the humans to understand.

"Thank you, Master," she replied with a satisfied smile.

' _What a suck up.'_ Demetri voice sounded in my mind, barley stifling a growl.

Some of the humans were already weary when they came inside the room. Others were either chatting amongst themselves or taking pictures. I could hear the anxiety and fear rising in their minds as they took in the sight of the vampires standing in the room. I heard them thinking how unnaturally beautiful we were, before they registered the color of our eyes. But by then it was too late, the doors behind them were already closed.

I did my best to tune out the terror and fear in the flock of human minds. Most of them were already unable to scream out loud, yet they still screamed inside their minds—making me almost flinch under the assault on my own senses. I picked a large man and sunk my teeth into his neck, aiming for the jugular. The sweet flavor of the blood that filled my mouth was tainted with a taste of ash. A smoker.

I couldn't care less.

The swirl of fresh blood hummed pleasantly inside my stomach. I drank slowly, savoring each drop of the sweet nectar. My mind registered the fact that the rest of the vampires in the room were also busy drinking and the bloodlust in their thoughts was obvious. The demon inside me rejoiced.

_...So sweet..._

_...Warm..._

When the man was finally drained I dropped his body to the floor, uninterested. While others were taking their second or even third human, I was already satiated.

_...Yes! Struggle! Fight! It only makes it more interesting..._

I smiled. Felix always liked it when his prey struggled. He shared my view in regard to the meal time, so whenever it was possible, he would join me for a hunt outside of the city. Felix enjoyed the chase just as much as he enjoyed the feeding.

Alas, I could not listen to the thoughts of the vampires without hearing the ones coming from the humans.

_...No. this can't be..._

_...I'm too young..._

_...Pain...so much pain..._

_...My son...my boy...I love you so much..._

That last thought caught my attention.

I glanced around the room to see whose mind had produced this thought and saw that it came from a human female. One of the newest additions to the guard was feeding off of her. His thoughts were a red haze, but hers made me freeze in astonishment. Her mind was so peaceful, so full of love despite what was happening to her. How could she be so calm?

I crossed the room, focusing on her mind, her thoughts. I kept seeing the images her mind created, images of her holding a baby boy, her _son_. There was so much love surrounding that thought as she was being drained by a vicious monster.

I became furious.

My body moved on its own before I had time to think about doing so. I snatched the vampire off of the woman and threw him back. He slammed against the wall, leaving a dent in the heavy stones. I was blind with fury, my lips curled back to reveal my sharp teeth and a growl broke from my chest.

"What the hell?" he mumbled, clearly in shock.

" _Mine!_ " I snarled, snatching him from his feet and throwing him across the room. He landed on a stone bench, breaking it into rubble.

It wasn't uncommon for a fight to break out during meal times. When vampires fed, their most basic instincts erupted, and the wrong move often led to growls and teeth bearing. From there in was a very short distance to a full-blown fight. No one gave us another thought. Everyone was busy with their own prey.

The vampire growled back at me, but I saw the fear in his eyes, and in his thoughts. He was angry that a meal was stolen from him, but he was not eager to fight me for it—not when there were others to choose from.

Once he diverted his attention to a new target, I turned back to the woman lying before me. Her eyes were open; they were a beautiful shade of pale blue. The woman had light brown hair, it was a shade lighter and lacking the red tint of my mother's hair, but she was every little bit like my mother.

It was the love in her eyes and mind, a love for her son that had spoken to me.

I may have not heard my mother's thoughts when I was human, but I recognized the look in this woman's eyes as the look my mother gave me.

I had never considered myself to be an optimist, nor did anyone ever describe me as such, but I suddenly felt _hope_.

The woman's heart was failing. Her body was already partly drained and there was not enough venom in her system. She was dying.

_No! I will not let her die!_

I could not save my mother, but maybe I could save this woman. I took her hand in mine, bent my head over her wrist and bit.

w.W.w

Caius decided that I had finally lost my mind. Leaving for a mission in the southern US, he was muttering nonstop about crazy vampires and mouths to feed, but I paid him no attention. Marcus was bored to death as usual, and Aro was amused—nothing new about that either. I ignored them both.

All that I cared about was the woman lying on the bed. I sat by her for three days as she burned. I listened to the pain and agony in her mind, tormenting myself. Had I made the right choice? Who was I to doom another being to this existence? I was filled with doubts and unable to leave her side.

Seventy-three hours and fourteen minutes after I bit her and my venom began to spread through her body, she finally awoke.

w.W.w

**Anne**

I wished for death to come. There was so much pain. Worse than the pain of labor. Worse than the pain of losing my baby boy. It was fire...all around me. My heart was beating so fast that I thought it will burst out of my chest, when all of a sudden—it stopped. Everything stopped.

No heartbeat.

No pain.

No fire.

Am I dead?

"Yes and no." I heard a soft voice answer.

I guess I didn't realize I was saying it out loud. But at the same time as that thought crossed my mind, my body was already reacting to the unexpected presence. My eyes flew open, my body recoiled from the bed I was lying on and I ended up with my back against the wall in a defensive crouch.

"I'm sorry, I did not mean to startle you." The man on the other side of the bed spoke in that same soft voice.

My thoughts were scattered around like a bunch of cockroaches fleeing from the light. _He's not human. There is no more pain. I can smell so many things. It is dark outside but I can see everything very clearly. Am I dead? No, he said I'm not dead. Who is he? What am I doing here? My throat aches._

"I know this is very confusing. No you are not dead, but you are no longer alive either. You are a vampire, like me." His words brought a whole new stream of thoughts.

_Vampire? I don't believe in vampires. Who is he? Where am I? What does it all mean?_

"My name is Tony. Do you remember your name?"

 _What does he mean do I remember my name? Of course I do._ "Anne."

My voice was as strange to me as the rest of senses. It was in a higher pitch than usual. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. The feeling was odd. It took me a second longer to understand why—there was no relief at the act. My body did not need the oxygen.

"Anne." He bowed his head in a greeting manner. "I know that you have many questions, and I promise to answer them all, but first, you need to feed."

_Feed?_

"Feed. That burning sensation in your throat will subside once you feed."

The moment he mentioned the burn I felt the flaming ache in my throat grow unbearably strong. He held a thermos in his hand and held it out for me, but did not move from his seat on the other side of the bed. I took a careful step towards him and sniffed the air.

My vision blurred. Whatever was inside the container smelled wonderfully sweet. I snatched the thermos from his outstretched hand and drank. The liquid was warm as it slid down my throat. It was the sweetest nectar I had ever tasted. The most intoxicating wine, the smoothest liquor, the most thirst-quenching water all mixed together to for an irresistible beverage.

"Feeling better?" He asked me when I was finished. He still didn't move from his seat.

I nodded and handed him the now-empty container.

"Good. Now, where would you like to start?"

There were so many questions clouding my mind that I didn't know which one to ask first. What was that delicious liquid? What day is it? Where am I? Who is he? What does it mean I'm a vampire? Do I have to avoid sunlight?

"Let me start with telling you a little about where you are, and we'll go from there." He suggested.

I nodded. It was as good of a place to start as any.

w.W.w

It was the first of many talks I had with Tony during the decades I had spent with the Volturi. My first year was not an easy one. I felt much like a newborn child, having to learn everything from scratch, but Tony was there for me. He was my sire, yet he was also my best friend, my shoulder to cry on, my safe haven, and the only person I had ever trusted with my own story. My son was only a few days old when he died, but there was something about Tony that reminded me of him. That was the thing that kept me sane amongst the madness all around me.

The three brothers—Aro, Caius, and Marcus—were a different story. Caius glared at me every chance our paths crossed, so I made sure that they did not do so often. I could never figure out why he hated me so much and Tony dismissed his behavior as nothing out of the ordinary. I must admit that after watching Caius interact with the other vampires living in Volterra—I had to agree.

Aro was like a kid in a candy store. He was fascinated by the connection I had with Tony, and he often made me feel like a lab rat under a microscope. His talent did not help calm my nerves, either. I liked my thoughts the way they were—private, for the most part. So I did my best to avoid him as well.

Marcus was...different. Most vampires took his behavior to mean that he was bored, but I saw more in his quiet manners. He was lonely and hurting. It took me ten years and an accidental meeting in one of the castles libraries to get a chance to speak with him and get more than a single worded answer, and it took even longer than that for him to tell me his story. The story of how he had lost his soul mate, and how that loss had destroyed him.

It was in June of 1965, over forty years after I was changed. On that day there were very few vampires present in Volterra. I found Marcus sitting on the outside walls overlooking the city. He seemed not to notice me approaching until I put my hand on his shoulder. I knew, without him having to say so, that there was something very special about the date—something that related to the constant pain I saw in his eyes. We sat together, in perfect silence, for hours. The sun set and the night came, but neither of us moved. I heard the vampires arriving and leaving the castle. I heard different voices carrying over conversations, but it was of no importance to me. I smelled Tony approaching sometime during the night, but I thought to him, _not now, Tony,_ and he left us alone. As the dawn crept from the hills, the first rays of light shining over the green scenery around us, Marcus began to speak. It was like a dam had been shattered and he could not stop the flow of words anymore.

When he reached for me, I accepted him. It was not love or affection that led us to have sex up there on the wall. It was need and loneliness. And it was also the beginning of our physical relationship. Never love—for his heart was long dead, burned with the body of his beloved and my heart was never involved—but need and lust and comfort.

The relationship did not last long, nor was it exclusive—he took other women to bed; I knew and didn't care. It was never even meant to last as long as it did, but when I decided that things were finally over, it had been almost two decades old.

I left the Volturi and Italy a little over a decade before the turn of the millennium. After discovering a passion for restoration and renovation during my years in Volterra, I had decided to practice it elsewhere. I was curious to see the world, the changes that had occurred in the many decades that had passed since I was born to this life.

I traveled to Rome and Tuscany first, then north to Paris and further to Oslo. I was enthralled with the beauty of the cities I visited. So many different styles and cultures, so much history in each and every building...

I travelled alone. I would come across one of my kind every once in a while, and even met with Tony in Barcelona at some point, but I mostly kept to myself. I had also travelled by foot for the majority of the time. It was not due to lack of means to buy or even rent a car, not at all. I simply enjoyed running freely around the unfamiliar continent.

Three years had gone by before I felt that I had seen enough of Europe and was ready to come home, to the States. I used the private jet that Marcus owned, landing in New York, and then made my way to my hometown by rental car.

The town had changed so much. I don't know why I was so surprised by that fact. Maybe it was because I hadn't changed one bit in the last century. It grew. New people moved in and old ones left. Babies were born and elders died. The natural cycle of life that had passed me over—continued.

After nightfall I went to the old cemetery. I found my parents' graves easily, learning that they died only a few years after I left. My mother had outlived my father only by a single year.

While walking in the cemetery and looking at the different tombstones, I came across another familiar name. My husband. It was in the military section, and judging from the date, he died just before the end of WWII. There was very little written on his tombstone, just his name, the dates of his birth and his death and a short inscription— _beloved son_.

I walked further away from the entrance, to the older graves, until I came upon the small tombstone of my son. It carried his date of birth and death, with only a few days separating the two. I was overcome with the sudden pain and for the first time since my transformation, I wished I were able to cry. I sobbed instead. Kneeling in front of his grave, I wept for hours. At the break of dawn, a new thought came to me. A horrifying thought that I had never before considered.

How many children have _I_ killed?

* * *

**Thank you for reading.**

**Don't worry this is still the same story. Bella, Carlisle, Alice and Jasper will return in the next chapter.**

**What do you think about Tony and Anne? How do you like naughty Alec?**

**Alley Cat.**


	6. Hope

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

Prom. That was the new form of torture that the schooling system in Forks had bestowed upon me. If I thought Spring Dance was terrible, then prom was hell on earth. There was no way I could escape the talks about who is taking who, who is wearing what, and who is going to "do it" in the backseat of their parents' car after the dance. Sometimes it felt like I'd be the only virgin left in Forks after the prom night.

I stated firmly that I wasn't about to attend, despite the pleas from my friends **.** It wasn't that I didn't have a date—I think that I was asked out by at least ten different guys.

Mike wasn't one of them this time; he was taking Jessica—thank god for small favors. Tyler was taking Lauren—who still hated my guts for no apparent reason. Ben and Angela hooked up after their date to the dance—I loved seeing Angela's face light up every time she looked at Ben or even spoke of him. I must say that out of everyone who pleaded with me to go to the dance, Angela seemed to be the only one who genuinely wanted me to go.

I still refused.

My formal reason was the fact that I did not want another visit to the hospital—whether it was for me or for the people dancing around me—but I had to admit that there was another reason. It was a silly one, and I was deeply embarrassed by it, but I had to admit it, at least to myself.

I was scared of going.

For the past few weeks, I had been having nightmares about the prom. Well, it was really just one dream that kept coming back night after night. It always began the same: I was wearing a blue dress that I had never seen outside of my dream, and I was going down the stairs of my house toward my date. I never saw his face; every time I got to the bottom of the stairs I was transferred to a room full of mirrors. There was broken glass everywhere, and my leg was broken. I was screaming in pain, and I saw a pair of sharp teeth sinking into my wrist. Then there was a burning sensation and the salty and rusted scent of blood—my blood. It scared the hell out of me.

I couldn't make sense of the dream, but it left me with a deep conviction that if I were to go, something bad would happen.

_Like I said, it's silly._

The best thing about the last few weeks was that I had managed to stay away from the hospital and any major injuries. I was also spending more time with Jake since he saved me in Port Angeles. He was being a very good friend to me. I felt that I could tell him everything, and for the most part, I did. He was amused by my dream; he thought that it was simply my fears of being injured manifesting themselves in the form of a nightmare, but I wasn't sure.

The only thing that I didn't share with him was my thoughts about Dr. Cullen. I had a feeling that it was something I'd better keep to myself, which was another thing I could not explain. I had thought about it, though. He had a very clear reaction to the word _vampires_ , but I could not place my finger on the reason. It seemed odd that a man of science, such as Dr. Cullen was, would believe in mythical creatures. On the other hand, what else could explain his reaction?

The other answer I came up with made me feel like a complete idiot. He was pale and had very quick reflexes, which fit the myth as far as I knew, but that was the only thing that did fit. He would come out during the day, and he was clearly not affected by the scent and sight of blood—I had witnessed it first hand, and he would not have chosen a career as a doctor if he was. As for the rest of the stories...I simply didn't know. He might be unnaturallystrong, but I never saw any evidence of that. I had no way of knowing how he felt about garlic and crosses, or even holy water. At the end of the day, I decided that I was indeed being a complete idiot.

But...and there was always that annoying 'but' in the back of my head, nagging me that there _was_ something strange, that I _was_ missing something very crucial.

_Come on, Bella! Dr. Cullen is a vampire? Next you'll be saying that Jacob is a werewolf and Angela's a witch!_ I smiled at the thought. _Yeah, I am officially an idiot_.

I was only grateful that I was the only one who was aware of it.

w.W.w

Charlie wasn't as blind to my mood as I had hoped he would be. He knew that I was having nightmares—there was nothing new about that since I had nightmares often after Renée and Phil's deaths—but he seemed to have caught on to the fact that there was something different about them this time.

It was nothing he said; it was more the way he behaved. He had been watching me a lot more closely these past few days, observing every move I made. It was annoying, yes, but it was also very touching. Knowing someone cared about me was comforting.

I couldn't deny that I had been feeling lonely.

It was worse after the accident. It wasn't the samelonely feeling that I had been experiencing since I lost my mother and best friend—it was a new kind of loneliness. I felt a pull in my heart, a tugging sensation that kept whispering in the back of my mind that I was missing more than a mother, that I was missing a soul mate.

Spending more time with Jake seemed to ease the pain. The gaping hole that seemed to have opened in the middle of my body was held at bay when my own personal bodyguard was around. But Jake wasn't the one that my entire body was yearning for, so it was only a temporary relief.

Charlie, being observant as he was these days, saw the way Jake made my mood slightly better.

"So is Jake taking you to the prom?" he asked out of the blue one Saturday, a week before the prom.

"No, Dad. I'm not going to the prom."

"Why not?"

"Come on, Dad, me and dancing? Do I need to remind you of my _very long_ hospital records?" He should understand me; I didn't get my balance issues from my mother's side of the family.

"That's no reason not to go," he tried to argue.

I just stared at him, not saying anything, with my hands folded on my chest.

"Oh, don't give me that look. I'm just worried about you."

My expression softened. I knew he was only doing this out of love for me, even if he was off the mark by miles. "I'm not going, Dad. And Jake is just a friend."

"Just a friend?" He raised a brow.

"Yes."

"You've been spending a lot of time with him."

"So?"

"You tell me."

"Dad, don't go there. Jake is a friend, nothing more." _How on earth did I get myself into THIS conversation?_

Charlie stared at me for a few more minutes. Since I couldn't lie to save my soul, he knew that I was telling the truth, but it was as though he was still looking for a deeper meaning. "Ok," he grumbled eventually.

"Fine. I'm going over to Angela's." I picked up my jacket and turned to walk over to the front door. "I'll be back for dinner."

"Ok."

I glanced over at him. He was once again engrossed with the flickering images on the TV.

"Bye, dad," I called as I walked out.

"Bye, Bells." I heard him reply when I closed the door behind me.

w.W.w

**Alice**

Carlisle had been avoiding us for the past week. Whenever he was not at the hospital, he was hiding in his study. I began second-guessing myself—something that I hated doing. Maybe I shouldn't have told him about my visions?

Everything felt wrong, and I didn't know how to fix things.

After talking to him on that first day, I understood that whatever changed in the past, whatever had caused reality to differ from my visions, had happened in the fall of 1918. The fall in which Carlisle never changed Edward.

I used the time to search the internet—a great source of information—for further details. I located a death certificate for an Edward A. Masen, dated December 3rd, 1919. It stated that he died from the Spanish Influenza in a hospital ward. Looking for more details, I found a death certificate for Rosalie L. Hale, as well. It was dated April 13th, 1933. I searched the papers around that date and found a reference to her murder. All ofthe reports stated that she had been attacked late at night by a gang of criminals, just a few days before her wedding. She was mourned by her parents and her fiancé.

All signs indicated that they were both dead, never turned.

The next thing I did was to search for Rosalie in my visions, desperate to find something. I gasped as the image of her wasrevealed to me.

Rosalie, clearly still human, was fighting three men assaulting her. The vision changed and the men disappeared, leaving Rosalie's beaten body in the dark street. I saw her eyes glaze over and heard her heart stop. The next image I saw was of a tombstone.

_**Rosalie Lillian Hale** _

_1915-1933_

_Your light forever shines upon us._

If I were able to cry, I would have been in tears. I felt the venom fill my eyes and blur my vision as the sobs escaped from my mouth. She was dead, really and truly dead.

Jasper was by my side immediately, holding me in his warm embrace, whispering words of comfort. I let myself sink into my mate; he was my rock, and now more than ever, I needed him.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

I did not know what I was feeling anymore. I never admitted it to myself before, but now I had to face the truth. During my long years as a vampire I never gave up hope that there was someone out there for me. Someone, who would be for me, what Carmen was for Eleazar: a soul mate, a lover, a companion in this loneliest of existences. Alice's words both shattered and fueled my hopes. Fueled because she confirmed my hopes that there really was a mate out there for me—that she was real—and shattered because everything Alice had saidimplied that I had lost my chance at love, that my mate was already dead.

I avoided Alice and Jasper for almost a week. I needed to deal with the mixture ofdifferent emotions that awakened within me. Anger, hope, loss, pain, frustration, despair...and so many others swirled inside me that I was simply overwhelmed. I could not handle talking to them just yet, so I threw myself into my work.

I was sitting in my study on Saturday, trying to read the newest issue of _Washington Journal of Medical Science_ when I heard Alice sobbing. I was out of my room and by her door before a full second had passed. She was being held by her mate.

_I do not need to be here_ , I thought. But I felt a need to comfort her nonetheless, a need that was deeper than logic. She was hurt, and I would do anything for her.

Where did _that_ come from?

"Alice?" I called, surprise and concern intertwined in my tone.

"I'm ok, Carlisle," she replied. "I just had a vision that had upset me a little."

"Is there anything I can do for you?" I asked, hoping that it would not upset her mate.

"I think it's time that we began looking for the rest of our family," Alice said, looking straight at me.

w.W.w

I took some time off from the hospital, claiming a family emergency, and left—along with Alice and Jasper—to try and find more information about the missing members of my...family, according to Alice. Our first stop was Ohio. Alice said that Esme had lived her human life in Columbus, and it was a good place to start looking for more information about her.

I looked into the localhospital records. Being a doctor meant that I had access to that kind of information more easily. Alice searched the libraries, and Jasper enlisted the help of some of his acquaintances.

Alice provided all three of us with as much information as she could give us: Esme was born sometime before the turn of the century, later than 1890 but before 1898. She came from a small, middle class family with no siblings. When Esme was sixteen, Alice said that she had broken her leg, climbing up a tree, and that was the point from which I started looking.

I went throughthe archives of all of the major hospitals in the city. I came up with a story that I was looking into the history of a patient of mine with a rare genetic anomaly. After getting access to the archives, I searched the birthrecords for girls named Esme born within the seven-year period of 1891–1898.

The records were incomplete, as was to be expected. During those times there were still many women giving birth at home rather than in a hospital. But I took my chances, and after going through the archives of five different hospitals, I came up with four differentpossibilities: Esmeralda (Esme) Pedro, born in 1892; Isadora (Esme) Parton, born in 1894; Esme Petite, born in 1895; and Esme Platt, also born in 1895.

I looked into each of the girls' records and found that both Esmeralda Pedro and Esme Platt broke their left leg when they were sixteen. There was no record of the reason behind the injury, so I could not exclude one or the other, but it was a lot more information than I had expected to find.

I dialed Alice's cell phone number, and she answered after the first ring. "Great job, Carlisle! I'll narrow my search for Platt and Pedro."

I chuckled. I was not yet used to Alice's unique talent. Of course, she had seen the results of my search as soon as I did. "Let me know if there is anything else you want me to check."

"I will." I could hear her smiling on the other end of the line and felt my spirits lift up as well.

"I'm going for a short hunt," I told her. "I'll meet you later, at the house."

"Ok," she said before hanging up.

I left the archives of the hospital and drove back to the house I had rented in Lancaster. I left the car in the garage and went outfor a short hunt in the national forest just out of the city.

I felt hope.

I knew it was dangerous to allow myself to feel that way, but I truly felt that there was a chance that I might find _her_. There was no longer any doubt in my mind that Alice wasright. _She_ was my soul mate, and I was willing to do anything within my power to find her.

"Esme." I tested her name on my lips. It felt right. It felt familiar. Maybe my prayers had not gone unanswered after all.

I caught a couple of raccoons and a large elk and drained them. The fresh blood added to the uplifted mood I was in, and I felt the tingle of a smile on my face as I made my way back to the house. I glanced up at the sky just in time to see a shooting star cross the horizon.

_I will find you, Esme,_ I made a silent promise.

w.W.w

Alice and Jasper were already back when I entered the living room. Jasper was smiling, clearly catching the good mood I was in. Alice was beaming with excitement.

"Can I assume that you have some good news?" I asked as I sat down on the couch.

"I found her." Alice's words sent a jolt of excitement through my body. _Could it really be happening?_ "Her name is Esme Platt, she was born in 1895. She married Charles Evenson in 1917 and gave birth to a baby boy in 1921. The boy died shortly after his birth, and Esme left her husband and disappeared in 1922."

I was confused. How could this be good news? Losing a son soon after birth, disappearing?

"Carlisle, I _saw_ her. She's a vampire."

w.W.w

_July 2001_

**Tony**

One hundred years can either be a very long period of time or an extremely short one, I thought while sitting next to the three brothers in the main reception hall. It was something I had been pondering ever since I crossed the one hundred year birthday mark.

Marcus, who had lost his mate centuries ago, was still grieving. To him, each century seemed like forever. He still sat on his throne simply because there was nothing that interested him anymore. For a time, Anne had kept him company, and I thought that maybe he was recovering, as much as a vampire who had lost his mate could recover, but I was wrong. Marcus didn't change while Anne was here, and he didn't seem to notice itwhen she had left. I never blamed her for leaving, she wanted to see the world through her own eyes, and she had every right to do so.

At the moment, Aro was speaking to one of the guards on the other side of the room. He didn't spend his days on his throne like his two brothers; he preferred to keep a close eye—and hand—on their guard.

Whenever he found something new, Aro acted in a way that reminded me of a child in a toy store who had just been told he can buy the whole lot. However, I had quickly learned that he was easily excited over every little thing, and I grew tired of it within the first year of service for the Volturi.

Aro treated a hundred years as nothing more than a blink of an eye. Maybe if I weren't so depressed. I might have attributed Aro's behavior to the fact that there was rarely anything new in our world. As the case was, the depression was taking over me, and Aro's excitement annoyed the shit out of me.

Finally, my thoughts turned to Caius. He was the youngest of the three brothers—although he was well over twenty-five hundred years old—and he still found the different assignments interesting and worth his time, which was why he was not currently in Volterra. One hundred years for him was probably just that—one hundred years, not long, not short.

And then there was me.

I was not a full member of the ruling brothers; although not due to any lack of trying on Aro's part. I was technically a member of the Elite guard, but I was taking less and less assignments outside of Italy in recent years. I wasn't sure yet whether I wanted to join the trio or not. The power had its charm, but there was something inside me that kept me from giving the final "yes" that Aro had been waiting for.

At first,I was provided with enough distractions sothat my mind was kept busy, and I was able to avoid dwelling for too long on the fact that I was a demon and a monster. After I had sired Anne, I found another friend in this life, and for a while, she made my existence tolerable. But eventually she left, and I was left with no distractions and no one to share my deepest thoughts and fears with.

Without Anne, I could not help feelingtortured even worse than before. The thoughts of the humans as we were feeding off of them haunted me relentlessly—fear, panic, and disbelief. Sometimes they were too terrorized for their thoughts to be coherent, but other times they would think of their family and loved ones, and I was reminded of Anne and of how much I missed her.

Two years ago, I had broken down and fled to the wilderness of the Russian forests, unable to take it any longer. I could not bring myself to feed willingly, but when the thirst grew stronger, I was too weak to stop myself, and my instincts took over. I tried feeding less often, but that was of little use.

Ten months after I had left, Jane and Alec had tracked me down, using the help of the best tracker in the world—Demetri. I was deep in the rain forests of Brazil by then. I saw in their minds how much of a mess I was, and I couldn't care less. Neither one of them had ever hada problem with the traditional vampire diet. They didn't understand why I was so struggling with what was so "natural" for our kind.

The twins, Alec and Jane, lived on the streets before they were changed. They had very few memories from their human life and none of them were pleasant, so they had no regrets over ending the lives of so many humans for the sole purpose of sustaining themselves.

Demetri thought I was being a fool. His views on the subject were simple: humans were our prey, much like the lamb was the lion's prey. It was a natural food chain of prey and predator, in which we were at the top.

All three had tried to talk me into coming back home, to Volterra, but it was Jane who had finally convinced me. As a young girl on the streets, she saw the ugly side of humanity. She had showed me in her memories the humans that she'd met before she was changed at the age of fourteen. They were the worst kind of humans—murderers and rapists. The only reason Aro had changed her and her brother at such a young age was because they were burned at the stake by illiterate herd-like humans suspecting them of witchcraft.

_You could feed off of THEM,_ Jane had told me in her thoughts, _and with your talent you can track THOSE creatures easily_.

I had seen reason in her thoughts, and so I had come back to Volterra with them.

From then on, whenever I needed to hunt, I would travel and find the lowest of the low. I would hunt those creatures that were just as monstrous as I was. There was very little that was human about them. I knew that murderers and rapists couldbe found on both ends of the social scale; human monsters could be living in the fancy mansions or they could be part of the crowd living in the slums.

The only reason I had hunted in the slums was that those living there would not be missed. It would be simply another death, another disappearance, and it would go unnoticed. That was the law in our world, and we all obeyed by it: no human could ever know about our existence. If one found out, he either joined us or became dinner. No exceptions.

After pulling me back from the wilderness, Jane had taken the place of Anne as the closest person I had in the Volturi. I could talk to her, and while she might not agree with my views, she always listened. In fact, now that I thought about it, she was the only female vampire that I had ever met—excluding Anne—that I did not have sex with. It was never about that with Jane. Just as Anne was more like a mother to me, Jane was like a sister, _even if an evil one at that_.

Alec, her twin brother, was her exact opposite both talent-wise and character-wise. Where she was serious, he was a complete buffoon. Where she was a scholar and spent most of her time with her nose buried in a book, Alec was burying his cock into anything that could walk and talk, regardless of gender or species. Where Jane was a very private person, Alec was...well, let's just say that we _all_ heard of his many... _adventures_ , and in greater detail than anyone would have liked to. However, when Alec was able to keep his head out of the gutter, his sense of humor and his fondness of practical jokes could take my mind off of things.

Over the years I had also grown closer to Felix and Demetri, even if they weren't ever considered family in my book. Felix had a menacing aura around him, but his loyalty was unquestionable, and he was always game for a good round of sparring—even if he did accuse me of cheating when he lost, which was most of the time. Demetri was part of my team on numerous missions, and while I knew that he was first and foremost a member of the guard and that his loyalties belonged to the three brothers, he was a good friend to have.

w.W.w

Life continued on for the next three years much in the same way—spending time with my friends as much as possible to keep my growing depression at bay and avoiding giving Aro the final yes to join him and his brothers.

At times, I would sink so low that not even Jane and Alec could reach me. Those times were getting much more frequent. Yet again, I was overcome with guilt over the murders I was committing. How was I any better than the monsters I was feeding off of?

With each passing month, I had found fewer answers to that question.

In the past year I could find no answers at all. I could find no difference between the savage murderers I was hunting and the demon I was. I felt myself drawn back in to that black place inside me, back into the same state of mind that I had been in just before I left Volterra sixteen years ago.

_I refuse to go back there again_ , I thought vehemently.

I stood up and left the reception hall I had been lounging around for the past few hours, no longer able to stand the brothers and the guards' verbal and mental chatter.

I tried to pick a book from the massive Volturi library, but nothing piqued my interest. None of my friends was available at the moment either—Felix was on a mission in Russia; Demetri was tracking some idiot in Asia; Jane was up in her tower—she had developed an interest in languages and was now working on her sixth—hell if I knew why would she want to study Aramaic of all things, but whatever; and Alec was, uh, _entertaining_ a guest. I had gotten a mental glimpse of his plans earlier in the day, and it was enough to make me keep a healthy distance from his quarters for the next week or so.

A thought flickered in my mind. _Maybe I should just go to Caius and ask him to end me and be done with it_.

I knew Aro would never agree to that, but Caius hated my guts and would oblige without a moment's hesitation. The idea began to root its way in my mind when I felt a vibration in my pocket. I took out my cell phone and looked at the newly received text message. It was one line sent from an unknown number.

_There is another way. Call me. Anne._

* * *

**Thank you for reading!**

**Thank you to everyone who added this story to their alerts and favorites, and thank you to everyone who took the time to review—hearing what you think is the best!**

**I'm pretty sure that is no such a magazine as "Washington Journal of Medical Science". I made it up for the sake of the story. Also, I have stretched Alice's talents a little bit (as I'm sure you've noticed by now).**

**As always, I would love to hear your thoughts.**

**Alley Cat.**


	7. Redemption, Acceptance, and Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Anne**

_There is another way. Call me. Anne._

My fingers were shaking as I pressed the 'send' button. I prayed to god that Tony would call me. I knew that he had every right not to. After all, I left him without any contact for longer than a decade. But I hoped that he would. Tony, like me, deserved another chance in this life. I knew how much he struggled with what we are and I didn't even want to imagine how his state of mind could have deteriorated by now. Fifteen years ago, God sent me David and Dale. Today, I have a chance to repay him, and maybe even a chance to repent for some of my many sins.

That night at the cemetery, standing over my son's grave, I had wished for death to come and find me. I deserved punishment worse than the fiery pits of hell, but it would be a good place to start. I got what I wished for only seconds later as I was attacked.

Three vampires came across the cemetery, two older ones and a newborn. They were clearly nomads; their clothes were dirty and torn, and they had no shoes on their feet. The newborn attacked, and I didn't fight back. The two older nomads saw that the newborn didn't need any help, so they stood there and watched. He was about to finish me off, my left leg was broken, one of my arms was torn almost completely off, and I was lying on my back. The newborn was straddling me with his mouth at my neck, when suddenly, he was gone. I heard a sharp screech of protest as he was torn away and then what sounded like the shattering of a stone. The newborn was torn to pieces.

Two male vampires, one huge and muscular, the other lean and graceful came as if out of the blue. They got rid of the newborn within seconds and were already dealing with the rest of his coven. The large muscular male reminded me of a bear; he was huge and handled the vampire in front of him with brute force. His companion was like a deadly dancer; his movements were fluent and graceful but deadly accurate. It was both terrible and beautiful to watch.

I knew that I was bleeding heavily from the many wounds the newborn had inflicted. I could feel the venom pooling around me, and I knew that I was losing venom faster than my body could heal all the lacerations I sustained. I closed my eyes, wishing for this to be over soon, and listened to the tearing of the two nomads. I expected to be next.

It took only a few minutes for the scent of burning flesh to reach me. The fight was over for the attacking coven. My eyes remained closed as I listened to the sound of footsteps approaching me. I braced myself. _This is it_ , I thought, _it's my time._

"Damn it! She's hurt pretty bad..." one of them said. "That newborn really did a good job on her."

"Yes, he did," the other agreed. "I wonder how he managed to inflict so much damage while sustaining almost no damage himself."

"Maybe he took her by surprise?" the first one suggested.

"Maybe, but now is not the time for that discussion. She's losing too much venom. Bring her something to drink, large if you can." The undertone of authority in his voice told me that he was older than his partner.

"On it."

I heard a set of footsteps fading away and moaned. I wanted to protest, to plead with him. I didn't know why he didn't just kill me like he did the rest of the vampires; I didn't want to kill another human. _Please,_ I thought, _please don't let me be responsible for the death of another son or daughter. I've killed too many as it is_. But all that came out of my mouth was a moaning, "No..." and nothing more. I was too weak, and I knew that I would not be able to resist draining the human dry. I had to find the strength to stop them. "P...please..." I whimpered.

"Shh...Don't speak," he tried to soothe me. "You must keep your strength. Your body is already healing, don't fight it."

I felt the pain shoot up my body as he straightened my broken leg and a cry of pain escaped from my lips. I knew what he was doing, this wasn't the first time I broke my leg; he had to set the bones right so that they could heal properly.

"I'm sorry," he murmured.

I tried to open my eyes, thinking that maybe I could plead with my gaze, but I could not find the strength to do that. I felt a soft caress on my cheek and heard his voice, just as soft, as he whispered in my ear, "Hang in there sweetie, just a little longer." He held my left hand, squeezing it lightly.

"Please... don't let me..." I mumbled.

"I won't let you die, I promise," he said, misunderstanding my plea.

I wanted to scream that I didn't deserve his compassion. I didn't deserve mercy. I opened my mouth one more time, gathering every last bit of strength that I had, but just as I was about to make the first sound, something was pressed against my lips. My teeth sank through the skin instinctively, and warm blood flowed into my mouth and down my throat.

My rational mind screamed " _No_ ," while my body hummed with the fresh blood filing each cell with energy. I drank two large gulps before I noticed that the taste was different but not unpleasant. I drained the creature dry in seconds. Just as I realized that it wasn't a human body that was pressed to my mouth; it was some kind of an animal. My eyes flew open in shock as that realization hit me.

Before I had a chance to ask even one of the dozens of questions that filled my mind, the large muscular male handed me another animal. I drank slower this time, learning the new flavor of the blood. It had an earthy quality, the sweetness was more diluted. The animal I was drinking was some kind of a wild cat, larger than a domestic cat but smaller than a mountain lion.

After draining the second animal dry, I felt strong enough to sit up. I felt my lacerations close and begin to fade; the pain was already lessening. I looked at the pair standing over me and gasped. Although both were clearly vampires, their eyes were not red—they were gold. I gasped in shock, and that's when the lean vampire began to speak.

"My name is David and this is Dale." He gestured at the muscular vampire standing next to him. "We do not feed on human blood; that is why our eyes look different. In fact," he suddenly smiled, "Dale never tasted human blood at all. It's easier that way."

I gawked at Dale and then at David.

"I began my vampire life just like you, drinking human blood, but after my coven was destroyed in the southern wars, I travelled alone. I love the outdoors—I think it's something that I took with me from my human life—so I climbed high-peaked mountains and explored the rain forests," David explained. "I was in Africa, in the middle of a desert, when I discovered that I could survive on animal blood. I let myself go without feeding for almost three weeks and there were no humans within the three hundred mile radius, so I tried feeding off of a lion." He paused, and it looked like he was choosing his next words carefully. "I found Dale about fifty years ago. He was dying when I found him. It was almost too late to save him even with the venom, but he survived, and we have traveled together ever since."

"Will you teach me?" I asked him.

w.W.w

That night David and Dale saved my life twice. The first time was when they stopped the newborn from killing me, and the second time was when they took me in. The first years with the two men were anything but easy. They were years of constant struggle with restraint, pain, thirst, and conscience. It took more than a decade before I was ready to leave the wilderness of Russia, where we lived up to that point, and begin our return to civilization. But this way of life meant that I did not need to wander around the world any longer.

David was thirty six when he was changed, and Dale was only twenty when David changed him. I came to see them as my brothers. David was the oldest of us three, and the wisest, and both Dale and I looked up to him whenever we were in need of advice. Dale, being the youngest, was like the little naughty brother that I never got to have. I found happiness for the first time since my own transformation. I found a family.

I was feeling nervous waiting for Tony to call. It took only ten minutes from the moment I hit 'send' to the moment my phone rang, but it was enough time for me to start fearing that he might not reply, after all.

"Tony," I greeted him. "Thank you for calling."

"Anne, it's been a long time." His voice was almost dead.

"Indeed. Are you mad at me?" I asked, worry creeping into my tone. How much had he changed in the last decade?

"No, of course not." He sighed. "You had every right to leave."

"Thank you for understanding."

"You're welcome."

"Are you able to speak freely?" I didn't want any of the Volturi members listening on our conversation. I held no grudge against the brothers, but I preferred them not knowing where I was.

"Yes, I'm in a forest outside Volterra. That is why I didn't call immediately."

"Good. A lot has changed since I left," I began, "After travelling in Europe I returned to the States. I..." I hesitated, not sure how to continue. Finally, I decided that the truth was the best way. "I found a different way to live."

"Different? How?" His tone was still flat; he sounded almost bored.

"More peaceful."

"Ok...I'm...happy for you?" he offered.

I knew that he didn't understand, but I needed one question answered before I continue with this, so I took a deep breath and said "I need to ask you something before I explain."

"Go ahead."

"Do you still struggle with meal times?" I used the euphemized term of the Volturi for what was essentially mass murder.

"Yes..." It was the first time I heard any emotion in his tone. He was hesitant but interested.

"What if I told you that there is another way? That you do not need to kill humans in order to survive?"

"That sounds..." There was a pause on the other line, and I smiled. Tony was always very careful with showing his emotions; that didn't change. "Interesting."

"Do you think you could come for a visit? It will be easier for you to see and make your own judgment."

"I think I might be able to arrange something." _Still so careful_ , I thought. _That didn't change either_. "When do you want me to come? And where to?"

"Chicago, whenever you are available."

"How long are you staying there?"

"I just moved here, so at least for a few more years." I smiled fuller this time.

"Years?" He tried to hide his shock, but I knew him well enough to pick that up. _He is curious, good._

"Yes, years. I know that you have many questions, and I promise to answer them all once you are here." I used the same words he had used after my change. The laughter on the other side confirmed that he caught the reference.

"Fine. I'll call as soon as I know when I can leave."

"Wonderful. I'll be waiting for your call."

"Bye, Anne."

"Bye, Tony"

It felt right. I never felt so strongly about anything before, but something deep inside me knew that Tony was meant to be a part of my life. It was no accident that I chose to go to Italy after my son's death, it was no accident that Tony saved me, and I was absolutely sure now that it was no accident that David and Dale found me. Everything was falling into place now.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

"How is it—? Where did you—? When can we—?" I did not know which question to ask first, so they all came out together.

Alice laughed. It was such a familiar sound that something suddenly clicked. I searched my memories for a moment. I knew that laugh; I heard it before, but when? And then it hit me—the house in Forks! I heard Alice's laugher in those visions that I thought were hunting me in the house. I did not know what it meant just yet, but I felt that things were finally beginning to fall into their rightful place.

"I don't know when we will meet her, but we will find her. The vision was solid. I saw her with us in Forks." She had the most beautiful smile on her face, and I knew that my expression must have mirrored hers.

"We need to come up with a cover story for you two," I said, and suddenly I thought that I might be assuming too much, but Alice cut me off before I said more.

"We would love to live with you, Carlisle. We are meant to be a family."

"We will need to come up with some kind of cover story, darlin'," Jasper said, looking at Alice.

"Carlisle said that he had a family emergency at the hospital, so we can say that he lost his brother in a car accident and left you, Jasper, alone. I was living with you as a foster child, and Carlisle took us in because neither of us had any other relatives left," Alice suggested. "Jasper looks more like you than I do," she turned to me, "so it makes more sense to claim that he's related to you."

I nodded in agreement. "That sounds like a good story. How old do you want to claim to be?"

"We can both start our senior year next fall. I can pass for seventeen and being in an advanced program in my previous high school, and Jasper can pass for nineteen and say that he started school a year late due to home schooling."

"It's settled then," I said. "Would you like to return to Forks tonight or do you prefer to stay here a little longer?"

Jasper looked at Alice. "It's your call, my love."

"We'll fly back tomorrow. We'll hunt tonight to make it easier for us. We haven't hunted since we got here."

"There is a national forest you can go to, not too far from here. I hunted there earlier this evening. You should be able to find something there."

"Thank you, Carlisle. We'll see you back here in the morning," Alice said, standing up and taking Jasper's hand in hers.

"I'll make the reservations for the flight, see you in the morning."

They left and I opened my laptop to order our tickets. I booked three seats on the morning flight, leaving at 10am. It would give us enough time to return the rental car and the keys to this house. Once I was done with the travel arrangements, I had a sudden burst of inspiration. It was the first time I thought about it in over three hundred years; there was really no reason to think about it until now.

An hour later when I completed my order I had the same sensation of rightness as before, when I heard Alice laugh. My future was looking brighter now.

w.W.w

**Jasper**

Alice was in such a happy mood that I almost started skipping myself as we left the house. It had been much too long since I've seen her so happy. Finding Carlisle alone and doubting her own gift were major blows for her self confidence. It still amazed me, though, the way she spoke of and felt for people who she had never met. There was so much familiarity in her tone, so much care and concern. She was truly amazing.

I smiled when she took my hand in hers and we ran towards the forest. This wonderful almost child-like woman has changed me so much. Alice brought light to the darkest places of my soul. In fact, I didn't even believe I had one before meeting her. Without her I would be just a savage, soulless monster. She made me the man I am today, and for that alone, I would have loved her, but more than that, Alice became my best friend, my companion, my confidant, my mate, my lover, my wife, and my entire world.

I worshipped the ground she walked on. I was thoroughly whipped and I couldn't care less. Alice was the most precious gift that I could ever receive, and although I didn't know how I have been so lucky as to have her, I would do anything for her. Her exuberance, her everlasting excitement, her faith and her inner glow were like a drug to me. I was addicted to my Alice, and I was happy to see her happy.

For the past few weeks, I felt helpless. She was so sad and filled with self-doubt that I couldn't even reach her with my gift. I would fight the devil and his army of demons for her to be happy, but how could I fight something that I had no access to—her visions?

Alice's gift can be both a blessing and a curse, and during the recent past it caused her more pain than ever. Seeing her now, with joy radiating from every cell in her body, made me feel so good it was almost like falling in love with her all over again.

I took a deer and a couple of raccoons while Alice drained a large buck. I drank more than enough to satiate my thirst, even going a little overboard. It was on purpose. Tomorrow we'll be flying back to Seattle, which translated to roughly three hours on being locked in a small flying metal can filled with deliciously smelling humans and air circulation that only concentrated their scents. I worried; I couldn't help it.

"There's no need to worry, Jasper." Alice placed her hand on my chest. She could pick up on my emotions so easily that it seemed as though she had a secondary talent of empathy. I looked in her eyes, seeing her smile reflecting in them, confidence emanating from her as she spoke. "You will do fine on the flight. Trust me."

"I do," I replied, kissing her lightly on her lips, "always."

I brought her tiny body closer to mine and placed my arms on the small of her back. "I love you," I murmured and kissed her again.

"I love you, Jasper," she answered, and her breath was so sweet against my lips that I just had to kiss her again. I moved from her lips to her jawline, placing gentle kisses on her face.

Alice's feelings were the best climate in the world: love, comfort, joy, satisfaction, and just a hint of lust. Of course, kissing her the way I was right now had sparked the lust in both of us. After letting me kiss over her jawline, she pulled me back to her lips, parting them under mine, her tongue demanding entrance to my mouth.

I was all too happy to oblige.

I opened my mouth and met her tongue with mine, caressing, tasting, and teasing her. Alice tasted like the first rays of sunlight after a rainy night, like wild flowers and just a touch of sweetness. I could never have enough of her taste. I poured all my love for her into our kiss. When she tilted her head slowly to one side, seeking deeper contact, I felt her hands climbing up my arms and lodging into my hair, pulling us even closer. I loved the touch of her skin against mine. It was so unique and yet so familiar that I was sure I could always recognize her touch.

I held her tighter as well, raising one hand to her shoulder blades to feel her body shaping itself around mine. I heard her moan as her breasts pressed against my chest and my hand cupped her lovely buttocks. Her moan was one of my favorite sounds in the world. That, and the way she whimpered and moaned my name when we made love.

I sucked on her tongue and could taste a faint trace of the elk blood in her mouth. It sent a pleasant spark down my spine. She was so sexy when she hunted, and tasting the blood in her mouth was almost as good as hearing her moan, in terms of turning me on.

"I want you, Jasper," she whimpered, and I felt another jolt of desire shoot through me. "I _need_ you."

"Your wish is my command, my love."

As I kissed her, I picked her up, one hand under her derriere and the other holding her head. I groaned into her mouth when she twisted her legs around my waist and my throbbing erection was placed right against her heated core. I could smell her arousal as I carried her to a small patch of grass we'd passed earlier. The scent was richer than the taste of her mouth, and I couldn't wait to taste her again. I laid her on the soft green carpet of grass and hovered above her body.

"I want to taste you," I almost growled.

"Then take me," she teased, lifting her hips and rubbing herself on me. "Show me what that mouth of yours can do other than talk."

"I remember you enjoying my mouth very much," I teased her, both with my words and with my touch as I cupped her perfect breasts and gave them a light squeeze.

"Maybe I need a reminder." She smiled, her eyes twinkling mischievously.

Alice, my little wild pixie...I just loved her smiling, her eyes sparkling. I gently squeezed her breasts again, grazing her already-hard nipples through the fabric of her shirt and bra. I watched her golden eyes darken. That was another thing I loved: watching my Alice respond to me.

I didn't take my eyes off of hers while I undressed her. There were twenty three buttons to undo—yes, I'd counted each and every one as I undid it and watched her eyes grew a shade darker as each button opened revealed more of her flesh to my caresses.

"I love seeing what my touch is doing to you," I whispered, and she moaned my name. _Such a wonderful sound._ "I love feeling your desire, your need for me." I placed open-mouthed kisses on her breasts just above the bra and went lower to kiss her abdomen, teasing her as I licked the bare skin above her pants. "I love knowing that I can do that to you." I placed my hand on the apex of the thighs as I spoke, earning another moan from her. "You like that, my love?" I smiled, knowing I was driving her crazy.

"Yes," she whimpered. "Touch me," she begged.

"I am," I answered with another smile and caress of my hand. Her hands pushed my head closed to her, her body was begging for more. I opened the top button of her pants and just like with her shirt, I took my time releasing her from the confines of the trousers. She growled at me. _God, I love it when she does that_.

"Jasper," she panted, "stop teasing me, please. I can't take it any longer. I need you."

Desire, lust, need and love all mixed together in the emotions radiating from her. The emotions were identical to my own, filling me so completely that I knew I was projecting it back to her without even a conscious effort.

"Yes, my queen."

I took her pants off of her, sitting back on my knees to pull the fabric from each of her legs. Next, I hooked my fingers into her panties and threw them over her pants. I leaned back between her thighs and put her legs over my shoulders, positioning myself as close to her as possible.

She screamed with pleasure at the first contact of my lips with hers. I kissed her just as thoroughly on her bottom lips as I did with the top, my tongue spreading the wet folds as I drank her arousal. She crossed her legs behind my head, imprisoning me with both her legs and her hands on my head. I was her slave and she was my queen. I was made to please her and bathe in her satisfaction.

I inserted a finger inside her, my lips travelling upwards to the small bud of nerves at the top of her sex. I flicked my tongue over that bud as I found it and curled my finger upwards while it was still inside her. Alice was beyond words now. The noises coming from her mouth were no longer coherent but a set of pants and moans.

I added another finger inside her and began moving them slowly in and out. Each time curling them upwards to touch the soft spot inside her and sucking off the bud at the same time. I knew exactly how to touch her, how to tease her, how to bring her to the edge of climax, and how to push her over that edge.

I moved my fingers faster, pacing my tempo to the rhythm of her breathing. With each pass, I pulled my fingers almost all the way out, teasing her opening before pushing them back in. I used both my body and my talent to please her, reflecting her desire back to her, adding my own pleasure to the mix.

I felt her emotions change and quickened my pace even more.

"Yes, my love, just like that," I murmured with my lips still on her.

It took only to more thrusts and then a burst of satisfaction hit me as the walls of her body contracted around my fingers, her back arching away from the grass. I continued to move my fingers inside her, drawing her orgasm longer. When I felt the waves of emotions subside I slowed the movement of my fingers and then finally, with another open mouthed kiss to her lower lips, pulled myself back up.

I made quick work removing my own clothes before flipping us, placing her on top of me. I crushed our mouths together, kissing her rougher than earlier. My need for her was just as aching as hers for me. I devoured her mouth, allowing her to taste herself. I lightly bit into her lower lip and smiled at the sound of my name falling from her lips in a soft moan.

"You are indeed _very_ talented with your mouth." She breathed heavily, smiling against my lips.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself." I chuckled. Even in the midst of the flaming fires of desire, that woman could still make me laugh.

"I'm sure you are feeling very happy with yourself." She smirked at me.

"I know something that can make me feel even happier." I smiled right back at her. The mischief was once again present in the mix of emotions surrounding her. She was going to make me pay for teasing her, I was sure. "But I do wonder," she began, taking her hands behind her back and unclasping her bra.

"Yes?" I asked and tried to lean forward to place a kiss on her breast, but she held me down.

"I wonder if you are just as talented..." She positioned herself above me, allowing me to feel the tip of my erection rub against her core, but not allowing me to push myself up and inside her. She leaned forward and placed my hand over her breasts. "...with other parts of your body," she finished and rubbed herself against me once more. Alice was teasing me mercilessly, and I knew I deserved it.

"I assure you, milady, that I am perfectly _equipped,_ " I bucked my hips in emphasize, "to _satisfy_ ," I moved again, this time she could not hold back the small whimper from falling between her lips, "your _every_ need _._ "

She laughed, her laughter heavy with passion, lowering herself down to me at last, letting me penetrate her and the laugher turned into a sigh of content. I massaged her breasts, tugging lightly at the hard peaks of her nipples. I knew I could make her move, dominate her even in this position, but I preferred to give her the reins for the moment.

She began to move slowly, almost painfully slow. I leaned her toward me, catching one nipple with my mouth and suckling her as she rode me. The change in angle was so pleasurable that we both moaned. "Ride me, my love," I encouraged her, switching to her other nipple. "Show your cowboy how well you can ride him."

"Jasper," she whimpered as her body took over her mind, making her move faster, taking me in so tightly inside her. "I love how your body feels inside me."

"I love being inside you."

She straightened and began truly riding me, fast and hard. I grabbed her hips and answered each of her thrusts with one of my own. I was getting close with each movement of her hips. I felt her emotions caressing me like a lover's touch. It felt so good. I was beyond words now, the combination of our emotions and the physical pleasure she was giving me brought me to my edge. I pushed her harder against me and brought my thumb just above our joining point, rubbing her bundle of nerves as gently as I could manage. She exploded seconds later, the waves of her orgasm—both physical and emotional—took me over my own edge and I succumbed to my own release.

I held her as she collapsed on my chest. She was panting and the light tremors of pleasure still emanated from her body. Her head was resting on my shoulder and her hand was splayed over my heart. Neither of us spoke. I didn't need words when her emotions spoke so loudly. Love, satisfaction, adoration, trust, comfort and more love. I answered her in the way that only I could: I used my talent to cover her in the warm blanket of my emotions, each echoing hers perfectly.

* * *

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	8. Movie, Mono, and Myth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

Despite Charlie giving me a hard time about it, I had successfully avoided attending the prom. I was able to be just as stubborn as he was—yet another family trait I got from the Swan side. It didn't mean, though, that he gave up on his attempts to hook me up with Jake, oh no. Both he and Billy were playing matchmakers, and Jake loved every minute of it—he seemed to find it very amusing, while I found it incredibly embarrassing.

After suffering through two evenings of those three having fun at my expense, I was desperate to avoid repeating the experience for the third time, so I called the girls. I started with Angela, but she had plans with Ben that involved a family dinner. Next I called Jessica, she was always a cheerful person, and I knew she'd be happy to go on a girls' night out. I suggested that she should pick a movie and maybe even bring Lauren—who was never far apart from Jessica—with her. Jessica agreed enthusiastically and said she'd talk to Lauren and let me know which movie she picked and when it was showing.

I should have known I was about to hit trouble.

Ten minutes after hanging up, she called back with the movie and some news: Lauren was bringing Tyler. Tyler, not wanting to get alone with two girls on a chick flick, was bringing Mike. Jessica, not surprisingly, didn't object. She had a crush on Mike from way back to ninth grade or so.

"You don't mind, do you?" she asked, slightly worried.

I sighed. "I don't know Jess, it sounds more like a double date. I really don't want to be the fifth wheel."

"You won't be," she tried to assure me. "Come on, Bella, please? For me?"

After a few minutes of thinking, I agreed. "Fine, Jess." It wasn't as though I had anything better to do, so I might as well go with the flow. "I just hope it won't be too weird, since I'll be the only one who doesn't bring a date."

"You can take Jake," my ever zealous father suggested from behind me. I wasn't even aware that he was home already.

"Take me where?"

And apparently, he wasn't alone since that was Jake's voice coming from the same direction as my dad. I turned to glare at my father, who tried to put an all-too-innocent look on his face, and saw Jake standing right behind him.

"Bella needs a date for the movies tonight," Charlie answered at the same time as I said, "Nowhere."

_Seems like Charlie was standing behind me longer than I thought._

"I'd love to go." Jake was all too eager to accept.

_Of course you would..._

"Sounds like you have one now," Jessica chimed in from the other end of the line. I nearly growled. Was it just me or was everyone ganging up on me tonight?

"Fine," I muttered. "I'll meet you in front of the theater."

"Great!" Jessica seemed oblivious to the lack of enthusiasm in my voice. "See you later!" She hung up.

Jake didn't even ask which movie we were going to see as he drove us to Port Angeles. He was probably so desperate to spend some time alone with me that he didn't care. I immediately felt bad for being so mean to him, even if it was only in my thoughts. He was being a good friend; it was not his fault that our fathers were taking things the wrong way. I should cut him some slack.

Mike was the only one standing next to the entrance door when we arrived to the theater.

"Hi Mike, where is everyone?" I asked when I was close enough for him to hear me.

"Hi Bella. They aren't coming. Jessica got grounded, and Lauren and Tyler decided to bail." He shrugged and gave a questioning look to Jake, who was standing next to me.

"Why didn't Jessica call me?" I asked, ignoring his glares.

He shrugged. "I think her parents took her cell phone before she could call. I got the news from Lauren—she was on the phone with Jessica when her parents grounded her," he replied. "Who's he?" His tone turned possessive.

"Mike, this is Jake, my friend from the reservation. Jake, this is Mike, he goes to Forks High with me."

"Nice to meet you, _Mike_." Jake didn't sound even remotely honest.

"You too, _Jake_." On the other hand, neither did Mike.

_Great… Mike and Jake on a date with me, can it get any worse?_

"Well, let's go and get our tickets, then." I did my best to sound excited, but I was pretty sure I didn't fool anyone. There was just too much tension in the air.

w.W.w

The plot of the movie was utterly ridiculous and had more holes in it than a large chunk of Swiss cheese, but it had nice special effects for the guys and a topless Tom Cruise for the girls. Or maybe I was just too nervous due to the presence of the two guys that insisted on sitting either side of me. I didn't object to the seating arrangements—the further they were from each other the smaller the chance of them getting into a fight—but it didn't mean I was anywhere near feeling comfortable.

When the movie started each of the boys put his hand, palm side up, on the hand-rest closest to me—Jake sat on my left, Mike on my right. Awkward couldn't even _begin_ to describe how I felt. Both of _my_ hands were folded firmly on my lap. So much for a _girls'_ night out, I thought.

At some point in the middle of the movie Mike suddenly jumped from his seat and ran out the door. I leaned over to Jake and whispered, "I'm going to go check what's up with him," before following Mike outside of the hall.

By the time I was out the door, Mike was nowhere in sight. The girl in the concession stand pointed at the bathroom door before I could ask and said "Your friend went in there. He didn't look too good."

_Ok, I'm not following him THERE._

"Where did _Mickey_ go?" Jake's voice came from behind me.

I frowned and pointed at the bathroom. Jake clearly didn't like Mike, and he wasn't hiding it.

"What a marshmallow." He chuckled. "A little blood and Mickey here has to run to the bathroom."

I glared at him, and scolded, "That wasn't very nice, Jake!" I took a deep breath to calm myself and said, "You should go back inside, you'll miss the rest of the movie."

"It's ok, I don't mind." He shrugged.

"No, really, I'll wait to see that Mike's ok," I tried to insist. "Go get your seven bucks' worth of blood and gore."

Jake smiled. _At least someone appreciated my sense of humor._ "It's ok," he repeated. "There wasn't much plot between the action scenes anyway."

I smiled back; I couldn't argue with that.

There was a rush of water, and a few moments later, Mike stepped out of the bathroom, looking as white as a ghost.

"Mike, are you all right?" It was a stupid question to ask. He could compete with hospital walls with how pale he was. _Although not with Dr. Cullen_ , I thought. I filed that thought in the back of my mind, promising myself I'd get back to it later.

"I think I'd better go home," Mike croaked, his face turning a bit greenish.

"You look like hell, dude." Jake chuckled, and I nudged him with my elbow. _Damn, the kid has muscles!_ I rubbed my aching elbow.

"Are you sure you can drive in this condition?" I asked Mike.

"My brother lives not too far from here. I already called him, and he'll be here in a few minutes to take me home," Mike said. "Sorry to mess up our date." He gave me an apologetic smile.

I saw Jake's jaw twitch at the word ' _our'_ and quickly spoke before he could react. "It's fine. I hope you'll feel better soon."

"Me too," Mike murmured and turned around, walking out of the entrance door.

As soon as he was out of hearing range I turned to Jake, "There was no need to be so rude, Jake," I snapped. He might have been my best friend in the past and saved me in Port Angeles, but I felt like choking him right then. Only the fact that he was a foot taller than me and twice as wide stopped me from wrapping my hands around his neck and pressing until his face turned blue.

"He was hitting on you," Jake almost growled.

"That's _my_ problem, not yours," I answered, looking up at him with a furious glare. _When did Jake get so tall?_

Jake chuckled, apparently finding something funny about my mood. "You want to go back and see the rest of the movie?" he asked, nodding his head towards the theater.

"No," I said. I lost interest in the movie, not that I had much to begin with. All I wanted at the moment was to go back home and forget that the whole night ever happened.

"Ok, then come on, I'll take you home." Jake stretched his hand to me. I glared at him and he chuckled again.

"What's so funny?" I snapped, shoving my hands in the front pockets of my jeans.

"You." Jake was having a hard time stifling his chuckles. "You look like a little kitten when you're angry."

I frowned, and he began laughing. "At least someone is enjoying himself," I muttered and turned to walk out of the building, not caring if Jake followed or not.

Jake wasn't even panting when he caught up with me and walked me to his car. I kept my hands in my pockets. Partly because of the cold weather, but mostly it was because I was still tempted to strangle him.

I found it funny that he called his car, "The Rabbit". It was a silly name for a car, and I couldn't understand why anyone would name their vehicle after something small and fluffy, especially if said person was male. _In fact, why would anyone name their car in the first place? It's just a car; it gets you from point A to point B, not a bloody pet._

Jake didn't seem to appreciate me mentioning it, saying something about how you should never insult a man's car or a man's equipment. I ignored him and his foul mood for the rest of the drive.

Jake didn't even greet Charlie when he came inside to take Billy home. Both our fathers seemed bursting with curiosity to know how our "date" went.

Jake barked a short, "It was fine," and I wondered if he was still mad at me for 'insulting' his car.

I stood next to Charlie on the porch and watched him drive away with Billy, following the car with my eyes until it disappeared from sight.

"So how _did_ your date go?" Charlie asked in a nonchalant manner that didn't fool me for a second.

"It was fine," I repeated Jake's answer. "I'm going to bed, Dad." I walked back into the house, eager to avoid any more questions about tonight.

w.W.w

With school out for the summer, I had every intention of sleeping in the following day, so I didn't set my alarm clock before turning off the lights. I fell asleep pretty quickly, and my dreams were filled with strange images of a sunny meadow filled with thousands of flowers. It felt so real that I forgot I was dreaming, just like I had with the nightmares before prom night.

My first thought when I woke up was that I must have really overslept because it was dark outside. My second thought, however, was much less coherent as I felt my stomach turn, and I ran to the bathroom. I barely made it to the toilet before everything I ate for dinner the night before came right back up. I washed my face when I was done and returned to my bed, thinking I must have eaten something bad last night. I was already half asleep when the second wave of nausea sent me back to the bathroom.

I spent the rest of the night on the floor of the bathroom. I was too weak to go back to my bedroom and there really was no point since I'd be running right back soon after I lie down.

The next day, when Charlie spoke to Billy, I found out that I wasn't the only one who was sick; Jake was also under the weather with fever and muscle ache.

Charlie did his best to take care of me. He brought me some fresh water every few hours, insisting that I needed to drink or I'd dehydrate. When he came back from work that day, he brought some dry crackers for me to eat. I refused to even try and eat them, my stomach was still tossing and turning even at the very thought of food. But Charlie insisted,

"When your mother was pregnant with you," he said. "Whenever she would suffer from a terrible morning sickness, these crackers were the only thing she could hold in."

I took a small bite, chewing very slowly and watching for any sign of denial from my tummy. When I swallowed the bite and there was still no tugging in the middle section of my body, I ate the rest of the cracker, realizing only then that I was actually quite hungry.

Three crackers later I decided that I had tempted faith far enough and gave the rest back to Charlie. He suggested carrying me back to my bedroom and I agreed, but as soon as he picked me up everything swayed and I had to throw up again.

When I woke up the next day, after spending yet another night on the floor of the bathroom, I was actually feeling better. I sat up and there was no more tugging in my stomach, my head wasn't spinning anymore and I wasn't nauseous.

Charlie left me a note saying that he was called in to the police station early and would be back with pizza for dinner.

After reading the note, I took a long and much needed shower. I had to wash myself twice before I felt clean enough. Spending two nights and a full day in between on the floor of the bathroom left me with a dirty-sweaty-icky feeling that took tons of soap and water to get rid of.

Billy didn't come over for dinner that night, or for the rest of the week, for that matter. When Charlie called him, Billy said that Jake was still sick and that the doctor said it was mono, so he'd be held at home for quite a while.

I wandered who gave Jake mono. It must have been recent because he looked fine two days ago at the movies. Also, Jake didn't show any interest in the girls on the reservation, at least not as far as I could remember from the last time I was there. I knew that I, sure as hell, didn't give him any mono, because I didn't even kiss him.

_Wait! Maybe it wasn't a girl at all…_ I thought when an idea flickered though my mind, _no, no way... he can't be… But he DOES hang out with the boys all the time, and they seem pretty close…_

My imagination was running wild again and I had to laugh at the direction my thoughts were taking me.

_So now it's vampire for Dr. Cullen, witch for Angela and gay for Jake?_ I smiled to myself in the mirror. I was being silly, I knew, but it was fun nonetheless and a nice change after the last twenty four hours.

The mentioning of Dr. Cullen made me go back to the movie night again, and to a thought I filed in the back of my mind to be reviewed later. Dr. Cullen was indeed very pale and something told me that my previous excuse (the fluorescent lighting in the hospital), didn't really apply. The theater had the same type of lighting and even when sick, Mike had more color on him than Dr. Cullen. So I decided to go to the library. I wanted to go online and do some serious research, but I also wanted to get out of the house, so the library was the perfect place to do that.

w.W.w

Five hours and a firm decision to suspend reality later, I came up with an interesting idea and lots of information about history, mythology and folklore. That, and one hell of a headache.

The different references to vampires had little in common. Even the method of killing was different from story to story. Some stated a wooden stake through the heart or decapitation would do the trick, while others spoke of dismemberment and burning of the pieces—much like the Quileutes' story about the Cold Ones. That was something I had not expected at all.

At least blood consumption, in one way or another, was present in most myths.

Paleness was stated only in some legends, but not all. In fact, after reading for a while I came to think that it seemed like every culture, every people, had their own variation of the vampire myth, each was unique to its origin.

The Medieval people in Europe had the Succubus (female) and Incubus (male)—sexual demons preying on humans during the night while their victims are sleeping.

The Brazilians had Jararaca, a bloodsucking undead demon who was named after a venomous viper—the demon had two long fangs and like the snake it was named after, its bite was fatal to humans.

The Irish had Leanashe, a possession sprite. The myth said that humans possessed by the sprite lived brilliant but short lives. It was surprising as most of the myths spoke of _long_ and _miserable_ lives for vampires.

The Romanians had Strigoi, troubled souls of the dead rising from the grave or living people with magical properties. Also referred to as immortal vampires, the Strigoi had the ability to transform into an animal, and could turn themselves invisible at would. _Pretty neat_.

I did take a look into the more modern myths—coming from Hollywood for the most part—starting from Nosferatu, going through Dracula and ending with Angel (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer). Then, once I was sure I had plenty of grounds for comparison, I made a list of what I knew and what I witnessed with Dr. Cullen.

The first thing on my list was, naturally, the paleness. Then I wrote quick reflexes, cold touch and appealing appearance. All of these matched the myths. But then, blood didn't seem to bother him, it was a major flaw in my theory. I couldn't check if he was really able to turn himself into a bat or a snake either, like the myths said, but there _was_ something that interested me, and it should be quite easy to check—reflection, or the lack of one.

The myths that had any reference to mirrors all said that a vampire didn't have a reflection because it was a monster without a soul. Ridiculous, I know, but since I'd already decided to suspend reality for the sake of the study, it seemed like a good place to start testing my theory.

I flipped through several more ideas in my mind; one of them was applying garlic to my skin and seeing if it repelled him, but I quickly discarded it. Doing that would repel more than just vampires; _no one_ would want to be around me if I smelled like garlic. Holy water could be a good idea; it was odorless and so it shouldn't bother anyone who wasn't a vampire, but I was unsure of whether it was a plausible idea to bring some to the hospital and "accidently" spill it on his skin. Too suspicious, I decided, and that idea was dropped as well.

I already felt like I was going crazy; I didn't need my dad to come to the same conclusion and put me in a mental institute. So I'd just have to come up with something a little less conspicuous and preferably, faster. I knew that it would not take me too long to return to the hospital. It was a sad truth but the truth nonetheless. It was so unfair to be so clumsy and fragile at the same time. For someone as prone to accidents as I was, there should be at least some kind of a defense mechanism.

I sighed. _Time to go back home, at least Charlie is bringing dinner tonight, so I don't have to cook._

It was just then, when I walked through the front door to my house, that another idea sprang into my mind.

_A photograph!_

I had a decent camera on my cell phone that I could use to take his picture. It was less suspicious than everything else I had in mind and yet still relevant to the myths.

_Yeah, a photo should do the trick_.

w.W.w

**Alice**

The vision caught me by surprise on our way back from the hunt. The image was of a hospital room. Carlisle was standing in front of a medical cabinet gathering some supplies while on the bed behind him sat a young girl, human. She was a little fuzzy in my vision—all I caught from her was dark brown hair, pale skin, and a steady heartbeat. She held a cell phone in one hand and took a picture of Carlisle. After the soft _click_ of the button, Carlisle's image appeared on the screen of her phone. The real Carlisle smiled to himself before turning back to the human, and that was the end of the vision.

"What did you see, my love?" Jasper asked.

"Hmm...I don't understand it yet, but it seems as though one of Carlisle's patients was with him. She was taking a photograph of him. I can't understand why."

Jasper laughed at that, and I glanced at him questioningly.

"I have an idea." He smiled, his eyes locked with mine, and I saw laugher twinkling in the golden depths of his gaze. "Some human must have a crush on our Carlisle." He winked.

I smiled, not because of the joke but because of the reference. It took so long for me to convince Jasper to go with me to the Cullens, so hearing him say " _our_ Carlisle" brought me so much happiness that my smile was beaming.

I reached to cup Jasper's cheek, watching the first rays of light cast a sparkle over our skins. "I don't think it's that," I said. "I think she suspects something. I think she takes that photo to see if Carlisle will appear in it."

Jasper smiled even wider. "Thank god for Hollywood." He chuckled. "Do you want to tell Carlisle?"

"No. There's no harm done. In fact, that would probably convince her that she's imagining things," I said and looked for the vision again. I saw the human girl's face contort into a frown of disappointment after seeing that Carlisle had indeed appeared on the screen of her phone.

"All right." Jasper placed his hand over mine on his cheek. "I trust you."

His fingers were so much longer than mine, so gifted...I remembered just _how_ gifted his fingers were only minutes earlier with perfect detail and smiled. Life was looking so much better than they did only several days ago.

We ran back to the rental house to meet with Carlisle and go board the flight back to Seattle. Everything was about to get so much more interesting, I thought and I could hardly contain my excitement. Another image, just a glimpse of a vision, flickered in my mind and my excitement spiked. Jasper looked at me, his brow raised, probably wondering what had caused the spike in my emotions. I shook my head, conveying to him that he would just have to wait and see for himself.

Carlisle was already accepting us as his own family.

* * *

**Thank you for reading!**

**All the myths mentioned above are actual myths, most of them based off of information I got from the internet, some of them are from a book in Russian that I took from my mom.**

**Alley Cat.**


	9. Take Me Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**David**

A cloaked figure approached us. He was dressed in the darkest shade of gray possible before it would be called black. His face was hidden under the hood of his cloak, his hands wrapped in black leather gloves and his feet equipped in black army-style boots. His footsteps made almost no sound at all as he walked on the concrete floor of the parking lot, making his way toward us. There was an aura of danger around him, and I noticed the vampire next to me tense in response.

The man was tall and, from what I could see through his cloak, muscular. He wasn't as wild-shouldered as Dale; his body had a leaner tendency indicating a younger age at the time of transformation than Dale's twenty one years. At a distance, he seemed almost as tall as Dale, but as he came closer, I saw that Dale had a slight advantage in that field as well. However, they would be pretty fair matched in a fight; the man moved like a well-trained soldier.

I stayed back, observing, while Esme hurried forward and threw herself into the arms of the cloaked figure. The man spread his hands to embrace her and I saw a glimpse of a medallion on his chest before her body hid it and they hugged each other tightly. The medallion was the final confirmation I needed.

_She never mentioned that her friend was Volturi_ , I thought disapprovingly, _The Elite Guard, no less_. Hurt and a trace of betrayal spiked, along with something very much like fear when I saw the man lift his head from their embrace and lock his blood-red eyes with me.

_Esme has the right to keep her secrets,_ I reminded myself. I saw the man release Esme from his embrace and look at her questioningly.

"Esme?" he murmured.

"There is much I need to tell you, but here is not the right place for that," she replied.

The familiarity of their contact did not go unnoticed by me. _What did Esme have to do with the Volturi? Why would she invite an Elite Guard to visit?_

Esme never spoke of her past in detail. I knew very little of what happened to her before Dale and I found her in the cemetery being shredded to death by a newborn vampire. I thought that neither one of us would be grateful if the other began rattling the locks on the doors holding back our personal demons. I always suspected that her past was just as dark as my own, even if maybe in a different way, which is why I never pressed for information.

"Where would you like to go? This is your home turf, so to speak." The man continued to use a hushed tone.

"I will take you to a private place where we can talk freely. Come on, I'll introduce you to my family." Esme took his hand and led the man toward the car, where Dale and I were standing. With time, both Dale and I came to think of Esme-and treat her-as our sister. The proud tone in her voice when she introduced us as family proved that the feeling was mutual.

I saw the Volturi guard tense in what could only be surprise before regaining control over his reactions. I watched his face carefully, I was certain that for a moment there was another emotion painted on his face and it wasn't surprise, it was…hurt?

_Interesting, why would he be hurt? I can understand surprise, but hurt?_

When Esme told us about a friend of hers who she invited for a visit, she didn't speak much about him or her reasons for inviting him. The only thing she said about him was that they went back a long time. There was no need for her to say that he went by the traditional diet.

"Dale, this is Anthony my friend from long ago. Tony, these are my brothers-David and Dale." Esme introduced us.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, David," Anthony said and bowed his head lightly in a greeting manner, "Dale." Another bow.

I would be lying if I said that I wasn't surprised. He was much better mannered than I remembered the Volturi members to be. From both rumors and personal experience, I knew them to be rude and patronizing. Anthony was neither.

"Nice to meet you too, Anthony," I replied with a warm smile. I noticed that he was still holding one arm around Esme's shoulders as if he was afraid that she would disappear.

"Same here," Dale added. From the corner of my eye, I saw that he was also smiling.

We all got inside the car. I took the wheel while Esme and her guest took the back seat.

"Take us home, David." Esme said once we were out of the airport.

w.W.w

**Tony**

"Hello Tony," Aro greeted me. He was the first phone call I'd made after hanging up with Anne.

"Aro, I'm taking some time off. I need a vacation," I informed him.

I was the only one-excluding the brothers-to call Aro by his name, rather than 'Master'. It was a small act of rebellion on my part, but essential nonetheless. I was not a piece of meat to be owned. I refused to call any creature-be it human or vampire-'Master', even if said vampire was my own sire. Aro seemed to find it amusing and quite refreshing.

There was some hesitation on the other line before Aro replied. "I am glad to see that you are taking an interest in something, be it even a vacation. You've been brooding for far too long."

I didn't argue. My depression was no secret in recent years.

"Might I ask, where are you planning to go?" he asked. I knew it wasn't mere curiosity that led him to ask that.

"I thought I'd start with a visit to my parents, and I'll go on from there." There was no point in hiding my destination, seeing as Aro will be able to find this information by himself easily. The more information I volunteered the less suspicion I would raise in Aro's mind.

"Do you know how long you'll be away?"

"I don't know yet. I need time to think." I didn't know how long I'd be staying with Anne, but I knew that I really did need some time away from the Volturi. I wasn't about to restrict myself-or to let Aro do that for me.

"I hope to hear from you soon," Aro said. "Maybe when you return you will be able to give me an answer."

I knew very well which question he wanted me to answer and what he hoped the answer would be. I didn't need to read his mind-which was impossible to do over the phone-in order to know that.

"Like I said, Aro, I don't know yet. I need time."

"Very well, Tony, dear, I hope to hear from you sooner rather than later."

"I'll call you." I made a vague promise.

"Have a safe trip, Tony."

"Thank you, Aro, you too."

"Goodbye. Tony."

"Goodbye." I hung up.

Conveniently, Aro wasn't in Italy at the moment. The reason for the trip-visiting an old friend of his-was another convenience. If it were any other reason, I would have been ordered to come with him. My presence in the battlefield was a very strong advantage to Aro, and as such, I always accompanied him on every trip that required his presence.

I preferred he knew as little as possible about Anne making contact, something that would be either impossible due to his talent or very suspicious if I choose to avoid his touch. I didn't know exactly where he was; I didn't care enough to pay attention when he left.

I used the computer in my office to book the plane tickets and called Anne once I had my flight itinerary. She said that she would meet me in the parking lot of the airport, so there was no need to rent a car. Once I was done with my phone, I went up to my bedchamber to pack. I didn't have many personal belongings in my room. My mother's jewelry and several of my father's personal artifacts-which were my most important possessions on this earth-were in a safe deposit box in a bank in Chicago. My piano-a Baby Grand I hadn't played ever since Anne left-wasn't something I would be able to move, nor was it something I would not be able to replace. _In fact, I think I'd love to get me a Grand one of these days, something that will have that rich sound of a piano I remember from my human years_.

I reached for a black duffle bag and put some clean clothes in it. It was mostly black jeans and dark long-sleeved shirts; I didn't have any reason to be wearing anything else ever since I'd joined the Elite Guard. I took an Italian passport and driver's license, identifying me as Tony de Volturi, from my bedside table and placed them in my wallet, along with several thousand Euros I'd kept there.

This was standard procedure when the elite guard traveled; each of the guards had a "de Volturi" identity that we would use. The de Volturi family was well known, and the flight attendants assigned to a flight which had one of its members on board would be briefed thoroughly. A de Volturi member flying was not to be bothered during the flight, and any requests he or she made must be obliged immediately, regardless of how odd they might seem. The Volturi paid well and wouldn't hesitate to change an airline if their demands weren't met. The brothers travelled by their own private jets.

I ignored the constant humming of thoughts from behind the closed door of my bedroom while I undressed and went for a shower. I turned on the water, and the sound of it helped drown the rest of the voices in my head. I stood under the stream of water after I finished washing myself, just allowing the hot temperature of the water to heat my ice cold skin. It was one of the few things that were still able to make me feel human again.

Fifteen minutes later, I turned off the water and wrapped a towel around my waist. My body felt unusually warm, and combined with the prospect of seeing Anne in little over a day from now, I felt better than I had felt in much too long.

I think it was those thoughts of Anne that distracted me enough to not notice that my room was no longer vacant. As I opened the door of the bathroom, I saw-and heard-Francesca standing in the middle of my room.

Francesca was one of Aro's latest "acquisitions". She possessed a unique talent of being able to mask herself-in both scent and sight-to such a degree that even a vampire standing just ten feet away will not see or smell her. Sadly for Aro, her talent did not allow her to mask others along with herself. He thought that she would still make a good spy for the Volturi, so he had invited her to join us after her coven was trialed and executed.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, slightly angry. Locked doors weren't strong enough to stop a vampire but there was such a thing as manners, which she seemed to have a lack of.

"I heard you were leaving?" Francesca said calmly. She wore her cloak tightly fastened around her. The cloak was the same color as mine; Aro's pets-and unfortunately I was one of them-were always members of the Elite Guard.

"Yes." I didn't see a need to elaborate. I grew more agitated with each second passing and her not answering. I saw in her mind that she was feasting her eyes on my almost-naked body, liking what she saw. "You didn't answer my question," I reminded her through gritted teeth.

Francesca didn't answer, not with words. I heard the thought form in her mind at the same time the smile spread on her lips. She threw off her cloak to reveal her fully nude body. I folded my arms across my chest and raised a brow. The anger faded to the background, replaced by amusement.

"I decided to see for myself if the rumors were true." She smiled and took a step toward me. "I see that they were right about your chest; it is magnificent." She trailed a finger over my folded arms and looked up through her lashes. "Now I want to see if they were also right about the rest…" With a light tug of her hand, the towel around my waist fell to the ground. Her smile widened. "Hmm…you really are…gifted." It was a murmur now, almost a purr.

Francesca took a second step, bringing herself close enough to feel the heat of the shower radiating from my skin, and dropped to her knees. I can't say I didn't like the sight before me. A man had to be dead not to respond to a naked lady on her knees fully intending on taking said man in her mouth. _Wait, I AM dead...scratch that._

She began with a long lick of her tongue along the length of my cock, followed by a featherlike caress of her fingers. _Hmm...that feels good_.

I suddenly remembered the fact that I had not had a woman in more years than I care to think about...and even longer since anyone had given me a good oral. I put one hand on her head, catching her by her hair and guided her at the correct pace. Her mouth felt so tight around my cock, even if she couldn't get all of it inside her. She came here to use me, so I saw no reason to act differently toward her.

I watched as her lips moved up and down on my cock, her hand pumping at the same rhythm as her head-a rhythm dictated by me. She sucked as if I was a human whose blood she was drinking, moaning in delight. I saw her other hand travel down her own body as she started pleasuring herself at the same time as she was giving me head.

_I will have none of that_. She would only get pleasure when I decided. I pulled her head back and locked my eyes on hers.

"Both hands on _my body_ ," I hissed and heard the thrill in her mind. _She likes to be dominated...Good._

She raised her hand-wet with her own juices-and cupped my balls, giving them a gentle massage. "Exactly," I said, pleased to see her being so obedient. "Yes…" I grunted as she sucked even harder and the term 'mouth like a Hoover' crossed my mind.

It didn't take long for me to feel the pressure building in my stomach, demanding release.

_She is very good with her mouth when she's not talking_.

I held her even tighter, thrusting my hips forward. My body was seeking more friction.

"Oh, Yes…" I growled and spilled my venom inside her mouth. I held her in place, with my cock still deep in her mouth-not because I cared if she swallowed or not, but because I wanted to prolong my orgasm as much as possible-and let the pulses of pleasure claim my body.

_I hope he's not mean enough to leave me without my own release_ , I heard her think and wondered whom she had been talking to that she got such a lousy impression of me. I may have been rough at times, but I had never left my bed partner unsatisfied.

I signaled her to get up, using my finger. Her thoughts brightened up immediately, and she obeyed.

"On the bed," I said.

I attacked her breasts as soon as her back hit the mattress. I suckled on them, one after the other, leaving her flesh wet with venom. It was her turn to fist her hands in my hair. I spread her legs beneath me as I hovered with my mouth over her right nipple. I paused for a moment, and she looked at me, surprised that I had stopped, and I saw worry creeping back into her thoughts. It disappeared a second later when I pushed two fingers inside her. She was tight around my fingers, and I felt my cock harden again at the prospect of feeling her pussy around me.

She moaned and tugged my hair when I began moving my fingers. "You like being fucked with my fingers, don't you?" I teased her.

"Yes…" she whimpered, and her hips bucked up uncontrollably.

"Do you want to feel my cock inside you?" I continued to tease her, keeping my fingers just slightly inside her, not allowing her to push herself upwards to insert them deeper.

"Yes...please," she begged.

"On your stomach," I ordered and pulled away.

Francesca gasped. If I wasn't so aroused, I would have laughed; it was such a human thing to do and it had been decades since her heart had stilled.

Once she was on her stomach I pulled her to the edge of the bed, her feet landing back on the floor. I held her by her waist and let my cock-now fully erect again-graze against her wet sex.

"Stop teasing...please..." she pleaded. "I need you inside me. Now. Please."

She screamed with pleasure when I penetrated her with a single smooth thrust. "Do you like feeling me inside you?" I thrust inside her with brutal force. I had no reason to hold back; she was just as unbreakable as me. She could take a strong fuck. "Do you like being fucked like that?"

"Ye-yes," she barely mumbled.

I set a quick pace, relentless. I heard her breath quickening, another human habit, and then she screamed my name, clenching hard, her body milking mine. I didn't ease on my pace. I knew it would take me longer to come for the second time, and as I had every intention of doing just that, I didn't let her come down from her orgasm before I brought my hand around her waist and onto her clit.

"Oh my...God...Tony!" She screamed again, and I couldn't help the smile on my face.

_One thing was sure now, I'll be leaving one hell of a reputation behind me_. I chuckled as I heard the thoughts of the vampires outside my bedroom.

_There he goes again..._

_Francesca is one lucky bitch..._

_...wish Tony would fuck me instead of her..._

_Tony, you're back! My man!_

I turned my attention back to Francesca-who was well into her second orgasm by now. Both her mind and her mouth were no longer coherent, too lost in her pleasure as she was. She answered my every thrust with her hips, pushing herself against my cock on one side and my fingers on the other.

I took my finger off of her clit, and she moaned her protest. I took one of her hands and brought her own fingers to her clit as I bent over her and whispered, "Rub yourself for me, show me how much you like the way I fuck you."

I stayed bent over her, enjoying the different angle, and felt her fingers slide every once in a while from her clit to my cock. I felt a familiar tug in the pit of my stomach, and I knew I was getting close again.

"Come for me one last time," I whispered on her ear again.

"Yes...harder..." she breathed.

I held myself just long enough to feel her beginning to pulse around me, and then I bit her on her shoulder and let myself spill inside her with one final shove.

I pulled out of her when I was done and picked up my towel from the floor. "I'm going to take a shower," I said, already the smell of _her_ on my body was making me nauseous. "I expect you to be gone before I finish it."

Without waiting for an answer, I walked back in my bathroom and closed the door behind me.

w.W.w

My flight to Chicago had two connections-one in Madrid and the other in New York. There were two reasons I chose such an indirect path. The first was that there wasn't a direct flight from Italy to Chicago, and the other was due to my thirst. Being incarcerated in a flying metal box with over a hundred people on board while the air was recycled over and over again meant that every breath I take would be saturated with the sweet aroma of human blood. Keeping the flights as short as possible and maintaining a gap of several hours between them helped reduce the chances of me attacking a human and exposing myself.

But even with these precautions and a thermos of blood in my carry-on, it would be hard. Luckily, spending so many years with the guard taught me much about self-control. The Volturi could not afford to have its own members losing it in the presence humans, risking exposure. The punishment for exposure was death, but if you were a Volturi as well, you might also get a session with Jane before the brothers took mercy on you and ended your existence. It was brutal, but effective nonetheless.

I wore my usual attire for the journey: my dark gray cloak, black leather gloves, army boots and dark sunglasses to conceal my red irises. I couldn't avoid attracting attention altogether, but I could reduce said attention to a minimum. I smiled inwardly when I heard what the humans around me think.

_Must be some hotshot rock star…_

_I wonder what's up with the army boots…_

_Damn, a celebrity._ The thought came from a flight attendant _. I just hope he won't be too demanding._

_...A soldier? He could be, maybe US Army? No, probably UK, he's too pale to be an American. I don't see weapons. I'm sure he was checked when boarding the flight, but that means very little._ This thought belonged to the on board marshal. _I saw members of the Special Forces kill with their bare hands. I'll keep an eye on him..._

He was right to be suspicious.

Both the flight attendant and the marshal were not too far from the truth. Their line of work made them more perceptive than other humans on board the plane. The Volturi _could_ be considered somewhat of a celebrity in the vampire world. We were recognized almost immediately by others of our kind, perhaps not by name, but certainly by our affiliation to the ruling class. The Elite Guard could pass as the equivalent of the Special Forces, thus making me a soldier. And I was just as deadly as the soldiers the marshal had in mind, even if I had no need for their weapon arsenal to achieve that.

_God! Look at him! I would LOVE to lick his..._ And, of course, one could never avoid the lust-filled minds of teenage girls. I sighed.

I tuned out the rest of the thoughts as the flight progressed and people began to fall asleep. I accepted a drink from the stewardess and refused the light meal. The chilled white wine remained untouched, as it was nothing more than a prop, while I pretended to sleep. Nothing could be as still as a vampire when it wishes to do so.

It was late at night when my flight landed in Chicago. I traveled light; my only luggage was a carry-on black duffle bag which allowed me to pass through the airport quickly. I took off the sunglasses once I was out of the building and headed to the parking lot, where Anne said she would be waiting for me. It was dark enough so that the very few humans outside wouldn't notice the color of my eyes and wearing the glasses at this time of night would have drawn more attention. I hated the damned prop, even if it was a necessity. The dark lenses obscured my vision, and after so many hours of wearing the glasses, it annoyed the hell out of me and I was happy to be rid of them.

I smelled her at the same time as I heard the familiar 'voice' of her mind. It took me a few more steps to see Anne with two other vampires standing behind her. Anne's scent was never forgotten-amnesia was impossible for our kind-but their scents were new, and my mind focused on them as well as their thoughts. They smelled like a mixture of grass and trees with the artificial scents of soap and shampoo they used. The older vampire recognized me as Volturi the second he laid his eyes on me, his thoughts disapproving. I glared at him and was satisfied to see both vampires stiffen and tense.

Breaking from the group, Anne ran toward me and threw herself in my arms. I hugged her tightly and took a deep breath of her scent. How much I've missed her.

_Esme has the right to keep her secrets_ , I heard the older vampire think. "Esme?" I asked as I released her from my embrace.

"There is much I need to tell you, but here is not the right place for that," she said.

I looked into her eyes, they were a warm golden color, no longer the blood-red I remembered her to have. _Yes, there is much you need to tell me_ , I thought. Her mind was busy taking the sight of me in, evaluating and analyzing, and thus preventing me from knowing more than she said.

_What did Esme have to do with the Volturi? Why would she invite an Elite Guard to visit?_ the older vampire wondered.

_Who's that guy? I wonder how Esme came to know him...probably someone from that dark past she never talks about_. The younger vampire mused. _A lover? A Friend? Her mate? No, he can't be a mate. They don't handle themselves as mates._ He didn't recognize me as Volturi, which meant he was young in more than human years.

"Where would you like to go? This is your home turf, so to speak," I asked Anne. She knew this was the city I lived in as a human-I shared almost everything with Anne during our time together in Italy, our bodies being one of the very few exceptions. Our relationship was never about sexual needs, from the very first second she was a mother figure to me. I respected that Chicago was now more her home turf than mine since I hadn't come back here after I "died" until now.

"I will take you to a private place where we can talk freely. Come on, I'll introduce you to my family." There was pride in her voice and in the thoughts of the two vampires behind her. They considered themselves as siblings, and the males were proud that she introduced them as family to her friend-me.

Surprise and hurt flashed through my body and I tensed before I regained control over myself. I saw my response register with the elder but not with the younger vampire. I hated my lapse in control as well as the jealousy and hurt that spread inside me. Anne had said close to nothing about me to the vampires she now considered as family. _Where does this leave me?_

I smirked inwardly when Anne introduced me to her _brothers_ and the older vampire-David-was surprised by my manners. _We're not all patronizing bastards in the Volturi; some of us are actually well behaved gentlemen_. But the smugness didn't last long. Once we were all seated in the car-a silver Audi R8 of the latest model-Anne turned to David and said; "Take us home."

_Home. How much I wish I had a place I could call my home._

I searched through Anne's thoughts during the ride. She was worried and tense, but she was also concentrating very hard on _not_ thinking about what she was going to tell me. David's mind was also troubled, and he was just as worried as Anne, though for a different reason. He worried about the effect my presence would have on his small family. I noted that he didn't use the term 'coven' but preferred the human term of 'family' whenever he thought about his 'siblings'.

Dale's mind was occupied with thoughts about video games. He was wondering if I might enjoy playing a round or two of something called "Tekken 4", which I supposed was some sort of a game. He also wanted to ask how long I would be staying because he was really aching for a good wrestling competition as neither David nor Esme were ever game. I took comfort in his thoughts, they were just so... _normal_. It was truly a nice change. And as far as I could tell, neither man was aware of my talent.

Thirty minutes after leaving the airport we came to a halt next to a house outside of Chicago. It was very secluded, separated from the main road by a long private driveway and surrounded by a thick forest. The male vampires didn't turn to the house after getting out of the car.

"We are going hunting," Dave said, looking at Anne. "We'll let you guys catch up."

"Thank you," she murmured and the two turned away and disappeared between the trees. Both of their minds were filled with thoughts about bears and deer, of all things.

w.W.w

"That night at the cemetery, after David and Dale saved me, I made a decision that I will not be Anne anymore. I needed to recreate myself, to feel human, so I embraced my human name once again. I haven't fed off of a human ever since; the new name was never tarnished with murder."

I was silent throughout the whole time Anne-err...Esme-was telling her story. I had questions, of course, but she was pleading me in her thoughts to let her finish before asking anything. Her beautifully golden eyes begged for me to listen and understand her need to tell everything without stopping, and I obliged. I watched the images in her mind while she spoke. I saw her emotions as she stood in the cemetery and wished for her own death, and my body contorted with her pain. I smiled at the happiness in her mind when she told of her life with her brothers. I felt the pride when she said that she did not kill another human being from that night on. But I was also jealous. I envied her peace. I envied her for her family. I wanted to have that as well, more than anything else in the world, I wanted to have her peace and be part of her family once again.

"Now you can ask me whatever you like." She smiled gently.

"Does it taste the same?" I was considering trying her diet from the first moment she mentioned it, and that was one of the burning questions I was waiting to ask.

"Not quite. Animal blood isn't as sweet as human blood. The herbivores are the worst," her face contorted in disgust as I saw the memory of the taste in her mind, "But the carnivores taste better as you go higher on the food chain. Dale prefers bears; I tend to favor large cats." She smiled and I saw her memory that a large cat was her first meal after being rescued.

"How long does it take for your eyes to change color?" I tried to picture myself with golden eyes instead of the red I was so used to seeing.

"About two to three months, depending on how often you hunt." _Hunt, not feed_ , she emphasized in her thoughts.

Hunt...I liked the sound of that. Humans have hunted animals since the beginning of the ages. In a way, this would make me slightly closer to the human I once was, instead of the monster that I had become. "And you get to stay in the same place for years? No one suspects?" I couldn't hide the yearning in my voice. It was the same feeling I had when we were in the car and Anne, no _Esme_ , had referred to this place as her _home._

"Yes and no. We can stay for several years, but eventually the humans begin to suspect that we do not age and then we have to move."

"Can you...teach me?" It was not the question I wanted to ask her, I wanted to ask her if she would take _me_ in, if I was still welcome, but I did not allow myself to ask that, not yet. A part of me didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable, while another part feared that the answer might not be 'yes'.

"I would love to." Her smile was brilliant.

"What about the others?" I asked timidly. I might be a well-trained soldier but there was still enough of a teenager inside me, apparently, to worry about the rest of her family.

"You deserve a second chance, Tony." She put her hand on my shoulder, in the very same manner she did all those years ago. "They gave me mine, and I will give you yours," she vowed.

* * *

**Thank you for reading.**

**Alley Cat.**


	10. Answers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Esme**

In August, we moved from Chicago to Vancouver. We left Chicago a little earlier than we had initially expected, but we preferred it that way—leaving early before people had had a chance to form their suspicions about us. As soon as we arrived at the house the men went for a hunt. It was the first time Edward flew since he embraced my lifestyle; he saw it as a sort of test. He felt the need to prove to himself that he was able to resist his thirst in the company of humans for the four hour flight from Chicago, he passed with flying colors—not that I had any doubt that he would—but he still needed to hunt, just like the rest of us.

Tony changed his name to Edward after our first successful hunt. He said that Tony was a nickname based on his middle name, Anthony, and explained that after learning what he had become, he felt that he no longer deserved to be called by the same name that his mother had used. He wasn't human anymore, and he didn't want a constant reminder of his lack of humanity. But after that first hunt, when he felt convinced that he could commit to a vegetarian way of life, he said that he _wanted_ to be reminded of his human self, and that led to his decision.

I have to say that I envied Edward sometimes. He took to this new way of life a lot more easily and quickly than I had. He had more self-control than any other vampire I knew—and I had the misfortune of knowing quite a large number of vampires in my years with the Volturi. What took me almost a decade to perfect, Edward mastered within two years.

"You have to remember, Esme," he told me once when we were alone, "that living with Aro, and being one of his "pets" meant that I was the subject of more scrutiny than the rest of the guards. I had years to work on my self control, even if it was used in different fields. So please don't chastise yourself." He gave me one of his rare smiles, one that reached his eyes as well. "Without you, I don't think I would have survived for much longer in Italy."

I hated thinking about that, about how close I had come to losing the first friend I'd had in this life. If I had waited longer before contacting Edward, I might not have gotten the chance to give him _his_ second take in life. So I let the subject drop.

David was still worried about the possible consequences of having Edward live with us. David had a dark past with the Volturi; it was one of the deepest scars on his soul, and he never spoke about it. With time though, he let himself ease up and enjoy the advantages of having another intelligent companion who shared some of his interests. Dale was very boyish and took interest in the physical side of our life, while David was more of a scholar, so having Edward around, someone who shared his interests, helped. With that said, all three men enjoyed hunting trips together very much. I joined them on occasion, but usually I let them be together and have some, "male bonding time," as I called it. Edward would join me again when I went out to hunt, because while he did have a great amount of self control, he still needed to hunt more often than the others—and so he would go on both a trip with the boys and a hunt with me.

I stayed behind for a while, letting the boys get a head-start on their hunting trip. I busied myself with opening the windows in each room to ventilate the house. The scent of the previous human owners of the house still lingered inside, and I decided that this would be the fastest way to get rid of it.

When I was done, I went for a hunt myself. As soon as I got outside of the house, I suddenly felt an unexplained desire to head south-east, toward Washington State. It was as if my entire body was tied to a rope and an invisible force was pulling at it from the other end. Once I crossed the border and passed Seattle, the urge got stronger. I reached Mt. Rainier National Park and took down a large elk, but as soon as I was done, I felt the pull inside me intensify almost to the point of pain. I was following an invisible path toward the unknown, and although logically I saw the danger and recklessness in it, I couldn't resist; I just ran.

As I ran, I tasted the air around me. I smelled pine, grass, wet soil, deer, wild flowers, along with rubber, cotton and just a faint trace of human scent when I crossed a trail used by the humans in the park. There was nothing new about the scents, but as I got further into the park I caught another familiar scent that made me slow down. Vampire.

I took in a few deep breaths. It was getting closer; I could already hear the telltale gust of wind as the immortal ran through the park. Every instinct in me was screaming to prepare myself for a fight, but the unexplained desire that pulled me here was now demanding that I stand still.

I froze in my place. I could _feel_ that the vampire was close. I could hear and smell him, of course, but there was something else, something that told me that whatever it was that pulled me here had everything to do with the approaching vampire. My muscles fought for control over my body and demanded that I fall into a defensive crouch, but my heart, oddly enough, was telling me that there wasn't any danger from whoever was approaching.

He came into view at the same time as the wind changed course, and I caught a lung-full of his scent. It was so sweet, almost as appealing as human blood, although its appeal had nothing to do with thirst, but rather with a different kind of hunger—one that I had never felt before, not even in my newborn years. It smelled like a perfume that was brewed specifically for my taste, a mix of soap, cinnamon, freshly cut grass and honey.

He was beautiful. I had no other word for it.

The occasional ray of sun that penetrated the heavy leafage of the forest danced on the blonde waves of his hair, making his skin sparkle delicately. His high cheekbones and full lips were almost as distracting as the deep honey-colored shade of his eyes. My heart, an organ that hadn't been beating for decades, flipped inside my chest, a sensation that reminded me of the way it would skip a beat when I was human. He was tall, his body lean and muscular. The wind that shaped his button-down shirt around his chest allowed me to enjoy the very distinct curves of muscle on his arms and chest. He wore black slacks that fit him like a glove, and I had an urge to lick my lips. _Or maybe lick HIS lips_.

I wanted to know the feeling of being embraced in his strong arms, the feeling of having the weight of his body over mine with no clothes in between, I wanted to devour his mouth and be ravished by his. If I were human I'd be blushing scarlet red and my heart would have been racing like a maniac in my chest. I had never felt such attraction in my life—human or immortal.

It was only then that I realized that he was giving me the same appreciative look and that his eyes had darkened almost to the point of being purely black, a sight that I was sure mirrored the color of my own eyes. We stood there, with a good twenty feet between us, neither of us speaking or moving as our gazing eyes finally locked and I was thrown into a frenzy of images.

I saw him sitting next to me on a white couch, his hand draped over my shoulders...I saw myself in the middle of a ballroom, staring into the golden hue of his eyes that were smiling down at me...I saw us standing in a kitchen, of all places, where he was standing behind me and my head rested on his chest as we watched the sunset...I saw myself sitting alone in an office filled with blueprints listening to music coming from somewhere—somehow I knew it was Edward who was playing—a beautiful lullaby that I had never heard before. For some reason listening to the melody made me feel happy...A tiny female vampire with eyes as golden as my own danced her way into a living room, followed by a male vampire. I had no names for them, but I knew they were partners and that I loved them very much.

The images had the quality of long forgotten memories, but they weren't foggy or blurred like I would have expected from human memories; they were clear. It was as though they came from an immortal time of my life. _But vampires are incapable of forgetting, so how is this possible?_

The silence stretched between us as more and more images came to my mind. These were more intimate, fragments of caresses and kisses that I had shared with the immortal standing in front of me. Flickering images of him walking out of a shower, his blonde hair still wet, wearing nothing more than a towel. _Who was this man?_

I was about to speak, voice my question aloud, when a female voice was suddenly heard from my right.

"Took you two long enough."

My head snapped to the right. A female figure stood next to a tree, leaning on it with her arms folded over her body. She was clearly not human. Her skin was pale almost to the point of being translucent and her eyes were pitch black—the way a vampires eyes would be after not hunting for a very long period of time. But she didn't smell or feel like an immortal. In fact, if I wasn't seeing her with my own eyes I would never have guessed that there were three of us here.

"Who are you?" asked the male standing next to me. His tone, soft with just a trace of an English accent, was strangely familiar.

"That is of little importance, Carlisle," she answered him.

I glanced at him. He seemed surprised that she knew him by name.

_Carlisle. Such an unusual name._

"How did you know my name?" he asked her.

"I know many things, Carlisle. Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to share most of them with either of you." She sighed, her expression was one of pain. It touched me on the most basic level, and I wanted to give her the comfort of a hug. "It is almost too late, but there is still time left, time to fix everything." She turned to Carlisle, her gaze intense. "There is still time to give you the past that Alice had seen," she said, and I saw that his face lit up with joy and astonishment for a moment before he composed himself. "The past she had seen and the future you deserve." She turned to me now, her gaze just as intense as the one she gave him. "Esme, you need to bring Edward to meet Carlisle's family."

I saw—from the corner of my eye as I couldn't tear my eyes from the black gaze of the woman—that Carlisle responded to both names. _How much does this man know about me? And why does he seem so familiar to me, despite the fact that I just met him minutes ago for the first time?_

"Carlisle, Edward must meet Bella." She paused, and I saw him nod. _Well, surprise, surprise, he knows this Bella girl as well._ "I will leave it to you to decide how and where, but it must be soon. Also, she is his singer, and he must be prepared for it because _they_ are the key." I saw that Carlisle was about to speak, but she cut him off. "There is not time for questions, I'm sorry. But they _must_ meet. You only have until the end of the second week of March. I can't say more than that." As she spoke, I saw that her skin was slowly losing the little color it had and she was fading away. "Esme, tell Dale that his angel didn't forget him. Carlisle, please give Alice a hug from her sister. Good luck, you will need it…" And with those words she disappeared right before my eyes.

"Please tell me that you saw her too, that I didn't hallucinate." I asked, my eyes still fixed on the spot where she had stood.

"I saw her," he confirmed. It was quiet for a moment before I felt him approach me. "Are you feeling well?" he asked, his tone was that of concern.

I finally tore my eyes away from the forest ground and looked at him. "Yes, I am, thank you," I murmured, my thoughts in turmoil.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

I didn't plan on travelling all the way to Mt. Rainier National Park when I left the house today, in fact I wasn't even out hunting as I had fed just a few days ago with Jasper and Alice, but I felt an odd desire to go. It was almost as though something in the back of my mind was telling me that I _must_ go. I caught her scent as I approached the park, but it took me several seconds to realize why it was so familiar to me. I had felt it in the house weeks and months ago. It was a scent I knew from my memories, those that I now suspected to be glimpses of the future Alice had been speaking about.

As soon as I saw her standing there, still as a statue, I was overwhelmed with visions. One in particular shocked me. It was that of her caramel hair spread on the pillow in my bedroom, her eyes dark in desire, and me worshiping her body...Every image was so sensual that I felt uncomfortable. How was it possible that I was feeling so attracted to someone I had just met?

It was only when the strange woman said her name that I understood. _Esme,_ the one I had been missing my whole life. I believed Alice's story, but after so many years alone, I had my doubts. Now, after seeing her with my own eyes, I knew that those doubts were gone. _She_ was _mine_. My body recognized that on the most basic level, and now that I had found her, I had no intention of letting her go.

But first things first, I needed to talk to Alice and Jasper, and apparently I needed them to meet Edward.

"I assume that, like me, you do not carry a phone with you when you go for a hunt?" I asked her.

She nodded. Cell phones were a nuisance when hunting because they had a tendency to break easily and there was rarely any signal in the places I hunted at, so even if they did survive the hunt, they were still pretty useless. I usually left mine at home or in the car, if I was traveling far enough to need it.

I was sure Alice would be on her way now. I had grown accustomed to the fact that she could anticipate my decisions easily, and I knew that she would bring my cell phone with her, but it would be faster if we ran to meet her.

"My home is not far away from here, and I'm sure that Alice is already on her way, but it will be quicker if we ran to meet her halfway there. Will you accompany me?"

"I would love to." She smiled gently. "While we run, will you tell me who this Alice that everyone keeps talking about is?" she asked in a playful tone.

"I would love to," I replied, repeating her words.

I wanted to offer her my hand as we ran but felt that it was too soon, so I took comfort in the joy I felt as she ran next to me. "Alice and her mate, Jasper, joined me several months ago, and now I see them as my family, although we are not related by blood." I smiled. It felt so good to be able to say that. "Alice is gifted. Since the woman spoke to you when she mentioned Edward, I assume you are familiar with the term?"

"Yes, I am," she said, but she seemed confused. I assumed it was because she was wondering how I knew about Edward's gift.

"In fact, it was her talent that led her to me. She saw me in her visions and found me just in time to be of great service to me."

"What kind of service?"

"She saved my life," I said, grimacing. I still didn't like to think of the price that we had to pay, two lives for my own. I saw that she winced at my words as well. _I wonder why she reacted that way._ "They also share my diet." I felt the need to add.

"Were you the one to teach them?"

"No." I hesitated. I didn't know how much of Alice's story I was allowed to share. I didn't mind baring my soul to Esme, but this wasn't my story to tell. "Alice had visions of me and of my way of life for many years before she joined me," I said, telling her as much of the truth as I could. "She adopted this way of life of her own accord, and when she met Jasper, she taught him."

"Are they the only ones you've met who live like this?"

"No, there is another coven up north, in Alaska. I consider them my closest friends. But judging from your question, I assume that you are not a new member of their coven." It was more of a question than a statement, and I had hoped she would feel comfortable enough to share her story with me.

"No, I am not. We—my family and I—moved here only today. I have three brothers, although like you and Alice, we, too, are not related by blood. Edward, of course, is one. The others are David and Dale. David is the eldest and he is like the older brother that I never had. He and Dale traveled together before they met me." She hesitated, and I felt that just like me, she was editing her story. "Edward was the last one to join us, even though I had known him for many years before; he is also the latest to adopt our way of life." There was pride in her voice when she spoke of him, a pride that reminded me of a mother boasting about the achievements of her son.

"Alice and Jasper are close now," I said, catching their scent in the wind. It took us only a few seconds more before we saw them appear in front of us.

Alice handed Esme my phone just as I was about to introduce them. "Call Edward and tell him to meet us at the northern part of Mt. Baker National Park." Esme took the phone, looking a little shocked at Alice's direct approach. "Oh, and when he asks, tell him that he can bring both David and Dale with him."

Esme nodded, looking still half dazed. "She really is psychic," she murmured, looking at me.

"I told you she was," I said with a chuckle; she looked so sweet when she was dazed.

"They just turned on their phones; you will be able to reach him," Alice said. "Call him."

"Yes, ma'am!" Esme smiled, shaking her head.

"I know how you feel," I said with a warm smile. "It takes a while to get used to it, but Alice is usually right."

"I'm _always_ right." Alice winked.

Esme stepped aside to call Edward, and I stayed with Alice and Jasper, allowing her some privacy. I could hardly take my eyes away from Esme. I was memorizing every single feature of her face, every curve of her body as she moved.

"You got it hard, Carlisle." Jasper chuckled.

"I know." _And I like it that way._

"They will be there in about twenty minutes," Esme said when she was done with the phone, handing it back to me. Her fingers brushed lightly against my palm when she put it in my hand, and I felt a tingle of awareness spreading through my body. From her sharp intake of breath, I knew she felt it too.

w.W.w

"Hello Edward, Dale, David." Alice greeted the three vampires by name, and I was forced to hide a smile at their stunned faces.

"Go easy on them, Alice," I said softly. "I'm Carlisle Cullen," I introduced myself. "The little one is Alice, and this is her mate, Jasper. Alice is gifted with the ability to look into the future," I explained. "That is how she knew your names, so there is no need to be alarmed."

"Nice to meet you, Carlisle." David was the first to speak. "And you as well, Alice, Jasper." He gave us all curt nods, clearly not pleased.

"Hi guys." Dale raised his hand in greeting; he was a bit friendlier.

Edward just nodded without speaking. I assumed he was trying to assess the situation.

"So, Esme, would you mind explaining what are we doing here?" David asked in a scolding manner. I tensed; I didn't like it. The protectiveness I felt toward Esme was already overwhelming.

"The situation is complicated," I replied curtly. "And Esme doesn't have all of the information as of yet. We have waited for you to join us, so we could tell you everything. Alice, would you like to start?"

"Yes, Carlisle, that would be for the best," Alice said and all four of them—Esme, Dale, David, and Edward—turned to her. "As Carlisle said, I can look into the future," she began. "I had visions of Carlisle for many years before I had met him in person. At first, I saw him with only two companions, a male and a female. Both of them were changed by him as an alternative to death." Alice was choosing her words carefully. I knew she was editing the information, having been told the story in much greater detail, but I didn't interrupt her. "Shortly afterward, two more joined his family. One was a female who was attacked and left for dead, and the other was a male who had lost a fight with a bear."

I saw Dale freeze in shock at her words. I wondered what in her story made him react that way. Edward's frown seemed to deepen, but I could not be sure of this as his face betrayed very little. Alice had a smile on her face. Apparently, she knew why Dale had reacted that way.

"After finding Jasper, he and I traveled together for many years. I still saw Carlisle with his family every now and then, but it wasn't until a few months ago, when I saw him being attacked by a coven of nomad vampires, that we made our way to meet with him."

I imagined that she was replaying the memories of that day in her mind as I saw Edward's gaze focus on her.

"Jasper and I arrived just in time to prevent my vision from coming true. We tried to convince the nomads to leave peacefully, but things didn't work out that way, and we had to destroy two of the three. The third one chose not to fight, so we let him leave." Alice paused, her eyes gazing for a moment. "Before I continue, I would like to explain how my visions work."

I assumed that at least one of them had intended to ask her about it.

"What I see is not definitive. I only see the _possible_ outcome. My visions are only as clear as the decisions that led to the future I am seeing. If the decisions change, then so does my vision. Also, they aren't always clear; sometimes the visions are blurred because there are decisions that have to be made for the future to firm. My visions of Carlisle and his family were some of the clearest I've had, so when I found him alone and heard what he said, I was stunned." Her face fell, and I remembered her confusion and distress when she learned that her visions differed from the reality she had found.

"What did he say?" Dale asked, looking at me.

"Alice asked me where the rest of my family was, mentioning each of them by name." I looked at Alice and saw her shake her head lightly, signaling me not to reveal the names just yet. I knew that Edward will hear my question for Alice, but I made sure not to think of the specific names. "I told her that I did not know any of the people she was speaking about."

"Carlisle said that he had never changed anyone," Alice continued. "I didn't know why or how that was possible, but the visions I was seeing never came true. No matter how clear they were." We could all hear the frustration in her voice as she spoke. "So I began searching for those people that were supposed to be changed. I wanted to know what had happened to them. Also, I wanted to know at what point in time my visions began to differ from what had actually happened. I came up with a theory; I compare it to a river which had suddenly hit an obstacle, forcing it to split into two different paths. One path is the future that I had been seeing; the other is the future that had actually happened."

"Did you find that point?" Esme asked her.

"Yes," Alice said. "In 1918, in Chicago."

I saw Edward freeze at her words.

_Yes, I had the very same reaction when she was telling me this,_ I thought, knowing that he would hear me.

"In my visions, I saw Edward dying from the Spanish Influenza in a hospital in Chicago at the fall of 1918. Having lost both his parents to the same disease, he had no one left in this world. Carlisle was at the hospital and he changed him."

"Obviously, reality took a different turn, as I left Chicago in the summer of 1918 and was not there in the fall," I added.

"From that point on, everything was different. In my visions I saw you, Esme." I saw Esme staring at Alice, puzzled. "I saw you telling Carlisle that you had lost a child and that was the reason you tried to end your life. In my vision, Carlisle said that he found you at the bottom of a cliff, but there was nothing he could do for you other than change you."

"I'm a medical doctor," I quickly added, foreseeing that they would wonder what I could have done differently. "From a medical point of view, from what Alice had told me about the injuries Esme told her about, there wasn't anything that could be done to save Esme."

"But I am curious," Alice said, looking at Esme. "Seeing as the end result is the same and you are an immortal, what did happen?"

"I did lose a child," Esme said, her voice barely above a whisper. She was hurting, and once again I wanted to give her the comfort of an embrace, but just like before, I felt that it was too soon, so I conquered my impulse and kept my hands to myself. "I was so lost after he died that I went to a cliff with every intention of jumping, but something stopped me. I decided to leave the country instead and traveled to Europe." She paused and looked at Edward for a moment. I think I would have missed the slight nod he gave her if I hadn't been looking for it. "That is where I met Edward. He changed me."

_Interesting. It is as though she was destined to be a vampire._

"The third vampire I saw joining Carlisle was a woman named Rosalie. I have looked for her in the records and found that she had died human."

"How can you be sure of that?" Edward asked. He was not curious, as his question may have implied, he was demanding an answer, disbelief coloring his words.

"I saw her die," Alice shot back at him. She wasn't one to be intimidated easily.

"Yeah, we've seen how reliable _that_ is." Edward huffed.

"Originally, I saw _Rosalie_ finding you, Dale." Alice ignored Edward. "You were bleeding heavily and on the verge of death. She was still new to this life when it happened, and she wasn't confident that she would be able to change you without killing you, so she took you to Carlisle. He changed you to save you. Although…" Alice hesitated, "in my visions, everyone seemed to call you Emmett." She looked at him, asking for an explanation and frowning. She didn't like not knowing things, and finding out that her visions did not match reality frustrated her. Her face cleared seconds later, and by the glazed look in her eyes, I imagined that she saw his answer before he spoke.

"Hmm...well, after the change, I didn't remember much, not even my own name," Dale began, looking embarrassed at his own confession. "David called me Dale when I woke up; he said that it was the name he found on the ID I had, which was soaked in blood and hardly readable. It took me a few years to remember enough of my human life to remember my first name, but by then, I was so used to being called Dale that I didn't bother to change it." He shrugged.

Esme seemed genuinely surprised to hear that, and I guessed that she didn't know about this.

"Thank you, Dale." Alice smiled at him.

"You're welcome, Shorty." He winked at her and we all laughed. Even Edward had a faint smile on his face before he composed himself. I wondered what had made him so reserved, as the rest of his coven was much more open.

"I will pick up from there, Alice," I said, and she nodded for me to continue. "After hearing the story from Alice, we attempted to gather more information about all of you, trying to see which parts of her visions had come true. We didn't get far as we had very little information to go on. Today, I went for a hunt and found myself in a park not too far from here. I met Esme there, but before we were able to speak, a woman appeared out of the blue, as they say. From what she said, it seemed like she was aware of the different course of events that could have taken place, or _should_ have taken place, according to her..." I repeated our conversation with the woman, passing on the message she had for both Alice and Dale. I saw his eyes widen in shock and Alice almost jumping with joy. "After thinking about this and hearing what you had to say, I can only come to one conclusion about who this woman is. I can't understand how it is possible, but she could only be—"

"Rosalie!" Alice chimed before I was able to finish my sentence, and at the same time, Edward asked, shocked, "My singer?"

* * *

**Now that I've confirmed that Tony is indeed Edward, take a look at the title of chapter 5—what does it sound like to you? It was a thick clue for all of you, but from the reviews I can see that most of you have guessed who Tony and Anne were.**

**But I am curious, how many of you guessed that Dale was Emmett?**

**For all of you who wonder, Rosalie is indeed dead, just like Alice saw in her vision. So how will this work out—well I guess you'll have to wait and see :).**

**Thank you for reading, and I hope you all have a wonderful week,**

**Alley Cat.**


	11. Doubts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Carlisle**

"Rosalie is a singer?" Dale asked, clearly confused. "What's a singer anyway?"

"A singer, or a blood singer, Dale," Esme replied "is a human whose blood calls to a specific vampire in such a way that it almost sings to him. What the woman Carlisle and I saw today said was that this Bella girl is Edward's singer."

"Got it." Dale nodded and then turned to me. "And what you're saying is that the woman you saw must be Rosalie?"

"Yes," I answered. "It seems to be the logical conclusion, even though I do not know how it is possible, considering the fact that Alice saw her die as a human. For the sake of the argument, let us refer to that woman as Rosalie, at least until we can prove otherwise," I suggested.

"I don't know if we should simply take this Rosalie's word for it," Edward intervened. "Why is she so certain that this human is my singer?" His tone was doubtful. I couldn't blame him for it, finding one's singer was a very rare occurrence.

"I'm not saying that we should take her word for it, but I do think that caution is advised," I said.

"Edward," Alice called him.

They shared a silent moment with their eyes interlocked. I assumed that she was showing him or telling him something using her thoughts. Whatever that was, it must have been something Edward did not expect, because with each passing moment I saw his eyes grow wider and his mouth drop open. He even took a step back before whispering, "Alice, that's impossible!"

"What did she show you?" Esme asked, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Edward did not seem to have heard her, his eyes were focused entirely on Alice. "It can't be..." He shook his head as if to rid himself of an unpleasant thought.

"No!" Alice shouted and crumbled to her knees, a look of utter terror on her face.

"Alice!" Jasper cried, he was immediately by her side, holding her rigid body next to his.

I looked at Edward and found an equally horrified expression on his face. He was staring at Alice, unblinkingly, while she was looking into the future in her mind. David and Dale watched the two with amazement and confusion written all over their faces.

A full minute passed before Alice finally broke the silence, "You have to leave." Her voice broke, and she looked like she would have cried if she could. "Please," she whispered.

"No." Edward's expression hardened and he straightened his shoulders. "I will not allow myself to be driven away by a mere human girl," he spat.

"A human girl who is your singer," Alice reminded him, despair written all over her face. She was still on her knees being held by Jasper. His face portrayed the fact that he was hurting just as much as his mate.

"We don't know that," Edward argued.

"How can you still doubt it?" Alice cried in pain. "I am not lying!"

"I didn't say you were," Edward snapped. "All I'm saying is that we are all capable of making mistakes." He shook Esme's hand from his shoulder.

"Alice, please tell us, what did you see?" Esme pleaded with both hurt and concern in her tone.

It pained me to hear her hurting, and I felt my temper stir and anger at Edward rising within me. He had no reason to be rude to her.

"She saw several _possibilities_." Edward was the one to answer. "Most of them are impossible."

"Not impossible, Edward, and you know it!" Alice scolded, rising on her feet. "It's all up to you."

"Will someone tell us what the damn pixie saw? Or are we going to continue with the cryptic remarks forever?" David demanded.

"Watch your tone, David," I warned, my voice never rising above the normal. No one raises their voice to a member of my family. For some reason, when I thought about my family now, the picture that came to my mind included not only Alice and Jasper but Esme as well, and even Edward and Dale.

"I saw Edward with Bella," Alice answered despite the glare Edward was giving her. "I saw him—"

"Alice!" Edward growled, and Jasper was immediately in front of Alice in a protective stance.

Alice ignored them both. "I saw him falling in love with her."

"With a human?" David was shocked.

"Edward in love with a human?" Dale boomed with laughter.

Esme was stunned, her beautiful golden eyes filled with sadness, love, and just a twinkle of hope.

I approached Alice and put my hand on her shoulder, asking her to look at me. "That's not all you saw, Alice. There is more." I was certain of it.

Her gaze was tormented. "He will either love her..." She hesitated, glancing at Edward.

"Alice, Don't!" he said through gritted teeth, but he did not come closer.

"He will either love her, or this will end with more than one life lost."

"Alice?" Jasper turned to her, worry in his tone. "Who else?"

"All of us," she mouthed, looking at her mate with the saddest eyes I have ever seen.

"What?" David spat.

I glared at him. With every word that came out of his mouth he made me like him less and less, and I was about to reach my limit.

Esme quickly stepped in between us. She placed one hand on my chest, but she looked at him when she spoke. "David! Behave yourself!"

She then turned to me with an apologetic expression. The look in her eyes and the touch of her hand served to calm me instantly. She touched me; she touched me, and it felt _right._

"I knew you'd be trouble, _boy_ ," he hissed at Edward. "From the first day I met you, I knew nothing good could come from a Volturi Elite."

Instantly, Edward closed the gap between them, and his face was now mere inches away from David's. Fury darkened his eyes to onyx black. _Volturi Elite? That's an interesting bit of information._

"Just the fact that I understand _why_ you hate everything related to the Volturi does _not_ mean I won't tear you into pieces, reattach them, and tear them again before I burn you to the ground if you _ever_ talk to me in _that_ tone again."

"You wouldn't dare!" David challenged him.

"Oh, believe me, I would do more than dare," Edward said in a very quiet and cold tone. The calmness in his words was more threatening than a shout would have been. Every nerve in my body knew that he was more than capable of acting on his threat, and with his training and talent, David would not stand a chance.

"Please, let us all calm down," Esme pleaded, looking at her two brothers. I heard the heartbreak in her voice.

_Edward, please. He's not worth hurting Esme,_ I pleaded with him in my thoughts. His head snapped to look at me. _I understand that you're angry. I would defend my family in the same way, but this is not what we need at the moment._ I thought in a firm voice, showing him that I was equally mad at David for behaving like that. Edward looked me in the eye and gave a small nod. His eyes were slowly regaining their golden hue.

"I left the Volturi two years ago, Jasper." Edward looked Jasper in the eye as he spoke, apparently answering his thoughts. "It is true that I _was_ a member of their Elite Guard, but my loyalty lies with my family now, and I will _never_ betray them."

Jasper nodded, accepting his words.

I couldn't help but wonder whether or not Edward included David as part of his family. Things looked strained between them. I saw Edward shake his head infinitesimally and realized that he was answering my question.

_Dale and Esme?_

He gave me an even smaller nod.

_I will not let anything happen to either one of them_ , I promised him. He raised a brow at me, and I continued to answer him in my thoughts. _I can't explain it, but I feel very...protective of Esme. You and Dale are clearly dear to her; therefore, I will stand by your side._ Edward seemed pleased with my reply.

"Well, I won't let you tear this family apart Edward," David barked. "You are no longer welcome in my house."

"David?" Esme stared at him, shock on her face.

I saw in the corner of my eye that Edward kept his expression blank. Dale stared at David, trying to figure out whether he really meant what he said.

"I think you are the one who is tearing your family apart," I told David. "I don't think that this is the answer." I tried to be diplomatic about the situation.

"No, Carlisle. I think this is _exactly_ the answer." David didn't bother to look at anyone other than Edward. "I never want to see your face again."

Edward didn't say anything; he folded his arms over his chest and stared at David.

"In that case, David," Esme said in the same cold tone that Edward had used earlier, "I think it is best that you leave now. I will come back to take whatever belongs to me later today, and you will not see my or Edward's face ever again."

_She's a protector_ , I thought, _like a lioness protecting her cubs_. I saw Edward's lips curve lightly at the edge of his mouth, and he closed his eyes for a second, conveying his agreement with my observation.

"You don't mean that, Esme," David told her, his voice harsh. "You can't survive on your own. The last time you were on your own a single newborn was too much for you." His tone was mocking now, and I felt a growl build inside my chest. _How dare he?_

"That is no longer your business, David," Esme said curtly.

"Fine!" he snapped. "I'm leaving." He turned and began to walk away. He paused after a few steps and looked back at Dale who was still standing next to Edward. "Dale? Are you coming?"

"No," Dale said firmly. It was the first time I saw his face filled with rage. "Edward never deserved the way you treat him, and Esme does not deserve to be treated like that either," he said. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

David gaped at him for a moment before his features contorted into a furious frown. "I saved your life! I taught you to survive! And this is how you thank me? By betraying me?" he shouted.

"You are the one doing the betrayal!" Dale shouted back. "Esme has been with us for more than fifteen years, and you are willing to throw her to the dogs as though she was nothing but a meaningless ragdoll. _You_ are the traitor."

It was a fearsome sight. Dale was a foot taller than David and twice as wide, with muscles clearly evident under the thin T-shirt he wore. I did not know if he was talented, but even with just his strength at his side, he was a force to be reckoned with.

I was a man of peace and normally would have intervened, but at that moment, I agreed with every word Dale said. _David decided to abandon his family in the face of a threat. This is the worst kind of betrayal_.

"Who do you think you are?" David slammed into Dale, sending both of them crashing into a tree.

I was about to go and break them apart when Edward ran over to the two vampires and threw David away from Dale.

"Is that how you treat your _brother_?" Edward hissed.

"I gave him his life, and I can take it back!" David retorted.

This time when David tried to throw himself at Dale, he was met with not only Edward but Jasper and me as well. "David!" I called his name in warning. "You do not want to turn on your own family."

"I think my _family,_ " David mocked, "has done the turning for me." He gave us all one last glare and turned his back, muttering, "You're not even worth it," before disappearing into the trees.

Esme turned to Edward, sobbing. He held her tightly in his arms, his eyes focused on the place between the trees where David was standing just moments ago. There was anger in his face, fury, and disgust, which were all understandable, but I also saw pain in the back of his eyes. He was desperately trying to conceal it, but I was certain that the betrayal had hurt him just as bad as it hurt Esme and Dale.

Dale was huffing, clenching and unclenching his fists, his chest heaving with labored breathing. His eyes, just Like Edward's, were glued to the forest.

I walked over to him. "Dale, calm down. Give him time to think. I'm sure he did not mean what he said." I tried to soothe him. I could not believe that David would simply abandon his family like that, without a second thought.

"I don't care. He's dead to me," Dale muttered. "And please don't use that name again. I never want to be called Dale again. It was the name _he_ called me by."

"Emmett is better?" I asked.

He nodded.

"Edward, Esme, Emmett, you are all welcome to stay with us," I said, and just like before—when Esme had touched me—this felt _right_. It was as though this was something that was supposed to happen years ago. _I guess I'm letting my imagination run wild on me, what with Alice's visions of having all of them with me..._

"I don't want to impose..." Esme started to object.

"You won't, I promise," I cut her off. I did not want to give her a chance to convince herself otherwise. I _needed_ her. "The house is big enough for everyone, and I would love the company," I said, speaking from the heart.

_Edward, I will take a detour to the house. I don't want to risk crossing Bella's scent. Singer or no singer, I think we have had enough drama for one day_ , I told him.

"I agree, Carlisle," he replied. "I think it is best to let things calm down a bit."

"I hate it when you do that," Dale, um, Emmett, muttered.

I glanced at him, surprised.

"You were talking with him in your head. Esme and he do it all the time; it's annoying," he explained, but he was smiling again, so I knew he was not truly upset by it. It was funny how he could brush things off and regain his smile back so quickly. "So what did you tell him?" he asked.

"I said I will lead the way home."

"Fine," he replied. "We'll be right behind you."

w.W.w

**Edward**

I left Esme and Dale with Carlisle and went for a run. It always made me feel better in the past, and after the day I'd had, I needed to release some steam. There was something about the feel of the wind on my skin that made me feel truly free.

David was an idiot. I still found it hard to believe that he could turn his back like that on Esme and Dale—I mean Emmett... _can people stop changing their names? I'm getting dizzy!_

I hadn't been at all surprised that he had turned his back on me though; in fact, I had been half expecting it for a while now. David and I had never gotten along too well. I knew that it wasn't personal. I knew that it was my past associations with the Volturi that had made him nervous and on edge. I had been suspecting that he would turn his back on me at the first opportunity he got since the first moment we had met. Today's events had only served to prove me right.

I was halfway to Canada before I finally allowed myself to slow down. I sat on a cliff edge overlooking the Pacific Ocean and watched the reflection of the sky in the waters. It was beautiful. The sky was littered with thousands of tiny lights and the moon was just a thin crescent in the sea of stars. I loved the nighttime. It was much quieter than it was ever during the day, people-wise, and that meant that I got some peace and quiet inside my own mind as well—a rare occasion for me.

I kept pondering Alice's visions from earlier. The grim images didn't scare me; they bothered me, true, but I wasn't afraid of them. It was the happy visions that gave me the creeps. Seeing myself in Alice's thoughts holding a human girl in my arms, _kissing_ her...It was mind boggling. _Was Bella really my singer?_ I couldn't help but wonder. It didn't seem likely; finding one's blood singer was very rare, and with Alice seeing me being... _intimate_ with her, I doubted it even more.

_Well, there is only one way to verify it and you know it_ , I said to myself. It was a split second decision, but my feet were already carrying me back to Forks. From what I'd seen in Alice's visions, I was pretty sure that I would find Bella's house without much difficulty. She was the daughter of the local chief of police; there weren't many houses with police cruisers parked in front of them in a small town like this.

I approached Forks from a different direction than the one I left, and as soon as I was inside the city, I caught the sweetest scent I'd ever smelled. It had the sweetness that I had once associated with strawberries and freesias; it smelled like the most delicious exotic fruit and the most familiar flower. My throat began to burn with thirst. It didn't matter that I had hunted only hours earlier; the scent of human blood always had such an effect, and this scent was worse than anything I'd ever tasted before.

I grew closer to the white house at the edge of the city, and the burn in my throat worsened. I grimaced at the growing ache as it seemed to prove what the mysterious Rosalie was saying. _Looks like Bella is indeed my singer_.

I stood in the forest next to her house with less than a mile separating me from the warmth of her body and the sweet aroma of her blood. There wasn't any doubt about it anymore, and once I took a deep breath, my entire body was thrown into a frenzy of thirst and need.

_Drink. Feed. Take. Kill._

I fought with the monster that was speaking from within my mind. The demon was thrilled, anxious. My inner beast wanted to drain the human dry, taste the warm sweetness of her blood on my tongue and in my throat. The man inside me was losing the battle to the vampire, and I could barely hold on to my reason.

_She's only a girl,_ I reminded myself. _She can't be much older than eighteen, the same age I was when I was changed_. I stopped breathing and listened to the thoughts coming from the house. I easily caught the thoughts of her father. He was dreaming and as dreams went; his thoughts were mostly a blur of pictures, water and fish and the need for patience. _Fishing_ , I guessed.

It took me a few moments to realize that I wasn't getting anything from the human girl. I could hear the thoughts of her neighbors, as well as the TV playing from a house down the block, but nothing from the girl.

_Maybe I was wrong and she's not there?_

I knew it couldn't be the case, but I took another breath or air, tasting it.

_Yes, she is there_.

The raging beast inside me roared and shook the bars of the cage I forced it into. It took every ounce of my self control to keep my muscles locked in place and not to succumb to the call of my singer. Years of training as a soldier, decades spent working on my self control while living with Aro and the overwhelming guilt that only the past two years were able to ease—those were my only aids against the monster that demanded to be satisfied.

_Focus on the thoughts._

I tried, but there was nothing coming from the house other than her father's dreams. There were no thoughts, not even blurry fragments of a dream coming from her.

_Maybe if I got closer?_

I took a tentative step forward, testing myself with every shift of my body.

_Can I handle this? Can I move without going in for the kill?_

I didn't dare take another step before I knew the answers to those questions.

Twenty minutes had passed before I cleared the distance to her back yard. I could hear the beating of her heart from where I stood under what I had assumed was her bedroom window, but there were still no thoughts.

_Interesting, this young human girl must be a very powerful shield if I can't hear a thing from her_.

Only Renata was this good at hiding her thoughts, and even then she had to concentrate very hard to do so. If Renata wasn't focusing on her mental shield, I could usually know what she was thinking about, even if I couldn't hear the exact words. Listening to her when she wasn't focusing was a lot like listening to dreaming humans.

_This Bella is more powerful in her human form and while sleeping, than Renata is on her best day._ As that realization settled in my mind, three things became apparent to me.

First, Aro could never know about her. Bella would be too desirable for him. He would not hesitate to change her and add her to his "collection".

Second, if changed, Bella would be one of the most powerful vampires I'd ever seen. She would be something to be reckoned with even without joining the Volturi.

And third, I was intrigued.

That last one was the most dangerous for the both of us. Bella, as a human, should never want a vampire to be intrigued by her, as it will only lead to her death. I, as a vampire who had found his blood singer, was in real danger of being the one to cause her death. But that wasn't the only reason why this seemingly harmless human who had triggered my interest was dangerous to me; it was Alice's vision that made me desire her in more ways than just her blood.

It was ironic. The burning ache in my throat was equal to the burning curiosity in my mind. Maybe this was what would save her life and maybe even my soul—if there was still such a thing left in me.

Bella was a human girl whom Alice saw me falling in love with, a human girl that Alice also saw me kill and feed upon. Bella was a human whose death would bring about the death of me if I believed Alice's visions, and I had no reason not to, not anymore.

_So, my dear Bella, it seems as though we have a future to share._ I liked the sound of that in my mind already. _My_ Bella.

_Be it death or love, there is no escaping it now._

_Love,_ it is such an odd emotion. I saw love and lust in the minds of vampires and humans for the past nine decades. I saw what the two emotions were capable of doing. I knew strong vampires who would turn to putty in the hands of their mates. I had witnessed covens being torn because of the lust of one of their members to the mate of another. Love was just as capable of destruction as hate.

The thoughts about love led me to think about the look I saw Carlisle give Esme today. I heard his thoughts and the emotions in them. He was falling for Esme, fast and hard. His inner being recognized her as his mate even if his mind hadn't registered the thought coherently just yet.

I didn't know how I felt about that just yet. Carlisle seemed like a decent immortal; he stood up for his family—Alice and Jasper had only been with him for a few months, and he already felt very strongly about them, very protective. Esme deserved to have someone to take care of her and love her the right way. I was never that for her, and it wasn't just because I sired her or that she was nine years older technically; it was because we never felt that way for each other. I filled the emptiness she had felt after the loss of her son, and she was the mother I had been missing in my immortal life. Esme deserved to be loved in a way I could never feel for her. She deserved to be happy.

Esme hadn't been happy for much too long. Even in her new lifestyle, she was content but never truly happy. Today made me hope that Carlisle might be able to fill that void in her life—a lover and a mate.

I was happy for her, but the thought did accentuate the lack of happiness in my own life.

_Will I ever find someone to fill the void within me?_

If I were to believe Alice, then I was standing close to that someone right now. According to her visions, I didn't even need to worry about telling Bella about my true nature. Alice had seen me sitting with the girl in a sunny meadow. I was sparkling like a bloody girl's toy, but Bella wasn't frightened or apprehensive; she was sitting right next to me and we seemed to be engrossed in conversation.

_What are you doing here?_ Alice hissed in her mind. She was close enough for me to hear her thoughts but not her footsteps.

I waited for her to come closer before I answered her. "Hello, Alice."

_Have you lost your mind?_

"No," I replied calmly.

_Then what—?_

"I wanted to see if she really was my singer." I shrugged.

She shook her head. _You are one stubborn vampire_.

"Thank you." I smirked.

_I didn't mean it as a compliment._

I could see the pout in her thoughts and smiled wider. "I know."

_It solidifies. I don't know what has changed, but the vision solidifies._

I saw the images play in her mind. Some of them were ones I'd seen earlier today—Bella and me in the sunny meadow, the two of us in a restaurant, me playing on a piano with Bella sitting next to me, Bella in my arms, our mouths intertwined in a kiss. Some were new—me laying next to her on her bed, watching her sleep, the two of us sitting in a classroom and sharing a table. Another vision showed her in my arms again as we were dancing; Bella's eyes locked with mine, and the expression on both of our faces was of pure joy and love. This was something I had craved for years: to love and be loved in return. Alice's vision was like a tap into my heart's deepest longings.

_Loving a human, Edward?_ I asked myself. Bella's love wasn't the only thing that called me to her; I desired her blood just as much. I needed to know that I was capable of being with her before I allowed myself to hope. I needed to know that I was strong enough, because everything inside me craved to hope, almost to the level of inflicting me physical pain. I deliberately took another deep breath, and this time I welcomed the burn in my throat.

_It will get worse when you're in the same room with her_ , Alice warned me. _There will not be fresh air and wind blowing to ease the burn_.

"I know. But it's a start," I said confidently.

It would take a while. I would need time to adjust myself to her scent before I could stand being in the same room with her.

_Jasper and I are starting school in two weeks' time. Jasper will be posing as Carlisle's nephew. I think you, Emmett, and I can pose as Esme's foster kids._

"How will we explain why we're all living under the same roof?"

_We were all living in Chicago when Jasper's parents were killed in a tragic accident. Esme's sister was married to Carlisle's brother. Both of them, as well as Esme's husband, died in that same tragic accident. Carlisle had offered Esme that we all live together as a family._

"I almost believe you myself." I chuckled.

_It will work. People will be curious, but it will be fine._

She showed me her vision of our first day in school. It was a bit blurry on the edges but things seemed to be going well as far as she could see. I knew that I couldn't rely on it too much—there were many variables—but it gave me something that I needed at the moment. Hope.

_You will need to familiarize yourself with her scent during these two weeks._

"I know. Any ideas on how? I already feel like a bloody stalker standing outside her window."

_Then you'll feel even more of a stalker when I suggest that you take an article of her clothing tonight. She will be doing her laundry in two days, so you'll have to put it back by then, but you can take another one after she's done._

"You're right."

_I usually am, but what about this time?_

"I do feel even more of a stalker."

_But you'll do it!_ she chimed in her mind.

"Yeah, I will." I shook my head. "I don't want to kill her on our first day of school, so I might as well go with your plan."

_It's going to work too._

Another vision played in her mind. It was again our first day of school. I saw all of us—Jasper, Alice, Emmett, and me—walking out of the main office and then taking our separate ways to our classes. I seemed to be having English first period. I saw myself walking inside the classroom, and after a few minutes, I saw that Bella sat down next to me. The vision cut off there.

"I hope you're right, Alice," I murmured. "I hope you're right."

* * *

**Wow, David leaving took even** _**me** _ **by surprise! But there we have it; our Cullens are finally back together. I know that I've missed them, so I'm sure you did, too. What do you think of our Edward? Is he strong enough to endure the call of his singer?**

**Have a wonderful weekend, and as always, thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	12. New Students

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I had almost made it through the summer without a visit to the ER. _Almost,_ but my inner klutz had to make an appearance...

Two days before school started, I went over to Angela's for a sleepover. We did this often during the summer, and this time it was supposed to be the unofficial "back-to-school," party, with Angela, Jessica and me. We spread our sleeping bags in Angela's room and watched some movies while eating popcorn and listening to Jessica's stories of her vacation in Florida during the summer. It was nice to have some 'girl time'.

I woke up early the next morning and went to brush my teeth and wash my face. I was on my way back to Angela's room when I heard someone calling my name. It was so sudden that I nearly jumped, but as I was turning around to see who called me, I tripped over something and ended up on the floor.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Bella. Are you all right?" Mr. Webber asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm sorry. I didn't think anyone was up yet."

He gave me his hand to help me up, but as soon as I tried to pull myself up, a sharp jolt of pain shot through my left wrist. "Ouch."

"What's wrong?"

"My hand, I think I might have landed on it at a bad angle," I explained. "It's nothing, really."

"Are you sure?" he asked, his brows furrowing in concern.

"Yeah, I'm all right. I fall down all the time, it's nothing new."

He let me go after that, but as the day progressed my wrist swelled to twice its size and Mrs. Webber insisted on driving me to the ER. I tried to protest but she wouldn't have it, and frankly, I _was_ a bit worried when I saw that my left wrist was almost completely purple. That is how I made it to the hospital at ten am on a Sunday morning one day before my senior year started.

I was sent to do an x-ray to make sure that I hadn't broken my hand and then was told to wait for the doctor in the exam room. I was surprised to see a very refreshed-looking Dr. Cullen come into the room with a smile on his face.

"Good morning, Bella."

"Good morning, Dr. Cullen."

"I looked at your x-rays and the good news is that you did not break your wrist, but you do have a sprain, one that will take a while to heal."

"I've been worse," I said, thinking of the two other times I'd met him.

"Yes, I believe you have." He chuckled, his golden eyes smiling at me. "I'll get a bandage to wrap your wrist and then you can go home." He turned to the medicine cabinet, "Are you here with your father?" he asked while his back was turned to me.

"No, my friend Angela and her mom brought me here, they will take me home." While Dr. Cullen was with his back to me, I suddenly remembered my day of research. _It's worth a shot_.

I pulled out my cell phone with my good hand and quickly snapped a photo. I looked at the screen, and sure enough, he was there. _So much for that brilliant idea_ , I thought with a frown. I put the phone back in my pocket before he turned around.

"This will feel a bit cold at first, but it will help your wrist heal faster," he said when he applied some kind of ointment on my wrist. The coolness of the ointment and the cold touch of his fingers actually felt good. I could have sworn that he was hiding a smile, though, while he worked on wrapping my wrist with a tight bandage.

_Did he notice me taking his picture? Maybe he thinks I have a crush on him!_ I blushed furiously at the thought. Okay, so he _was_ a _very_ handsome man, but he was _way_ too old for me.

I knew that he'd noticed me blush, but thankfully he didn't comment on it. I nearly bolted out of the room when he said I could go, and I thought I heard him chuckling behind me.

_Stupid! Stupid, Bella! What on Earth were you thinking?_

I just wanted to get out of there as soon as possible and bury myself under a rock, preferably on a different continent, where I would never have to look him in the eye again. _So embarrassing..._

w.W.w

On the first day of the new semester school was buzzing, not that it was unexpected; after all, this _was_ our final year in Forks High. As soon as I stepped out of my truck, I put on my iPod. I was still not over the embarrassment of my incident with Dr. Cullen just the day before, and I wanted nothing more than to be left alone.

I was pulled over by a very excited Jessica before I could get into my first period class.

"Did you see them?" she asked excitedly.

"See who?"

"The new kids!"

"What new kids?"

"Dr. Cullen's foster kids."

"Huh?" _Since when did Dr. Cullen have foster kids?_

"I heard it from Lauren, who was in the office when they came in. Apparently, Dr. Cullen had a brother. He and his wife died in a car accident this summer, so Dr. Cullen brought his nephew to live with him. He also took in his brother's foster kids so they wouldn't be forced to separate and go to different homes. Three guys and a girl, the girl is also his nephew's girlfriend or something. Lauren said that they were all _gorgeous_!" Jessica was talking so fast I wondered how it was possible that she wasn't out of breath yet.

"Jess, breathe!" I smiled.

She took a large gulp of air and a wistful expression came over her face. "I hope they have classes with me."

I suspected that she was probably already planning on asking one of the new guys out.

"I have to get to class, Jess," I said. "You should go, too, or you'll be late."

"Fine, see you at lunch." She waved at me and turned to run to her class.

"Okay, see you." I shook my head and went inside the classroom. I couldn't help but smile at her behavior. Jessica was easily excited, but I was confident that she would forget about these new kids in a few days and return to chasing Mike. I just wondered when he would wake up and see her. _I just hope it won't be too late; they are quite good for each other._

I took a seat in the back of the class. English was my favorite subject, but Mr. Berty was a little over-enthusiastic about it and tended to spray anyone who was sitting front row. The class slowly filled up, and I saw that both Eric and Tyler were taking the class with me, but thankfully I would not have to stand Lauren this year. I hadn't seen her much over the summer, so I didn't know whether or not she still felt the same way about me, but I wasn't too keen on finding out. _Besides, she will probably sit with us during lunch, so I should enjoy my Lauren-free time while it lasts._

I was so preoccupied with my thoughts that I scarcely noticed when someone approached the table I was sitting next to and asked in a soft velvet voice, "Excuse me, is this seat taken?"

"No," I answered automatically before I even looked up to see who was talking. The voice was unfamiliar to me, but the moment my eyes locked with his, I forgot everything. I was no longer aware that I was in a classroom or that there were people around me; all I saw was _him_. His eyes were absolutely pitch-black, but somehow I knew them to be golden as well. I didn't speak and neither did he. We just stared at each other as he sat on the chair next to mine. His jaw was clenched, and it looked as though he wasn't even breathing.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that the bell had rung and that the teacher—whose name I couldn't for the life of me recall at the moment—was already in class and talking about the importance of paying attention, but it was all just background noise to me. All I could see was _him,_ his tousled bronze hair that fell over his forehead and into his eyes, his clenched but very manly jaw that was clean-shaven, the straight line of his nose, the thick dark eyelashes that shielded his eyes in what was the reason why the expression 'bedroom eyes' was invented to begin with. All I could _smell_ was _him_...and he smelled like lilac and sunshine and something else that I could not name. All I could hear was the soft murmur of his velvet voice echoing over and over in my head as I repeated the only words I'd heard him speak— _Excuse me, is this seat taken?_...

Everything about him was drawing me in. My soul recognized him as the piece that I didn't even know I'd been missing. The spark in the onyx of his eyes did wonders to my heartbeat, sending it into a frenzy. I couldn't name the emotions that he invoked within me simply because I didn't recognized half of them. There was attraction, of course, with his looks I'd have to be without a pulse to _not_ find him appealing, but there were also fear, sadness, pain, and... _longing_?

Finally, after what must have been several minutes, he turned his gaze to the front of the class and my trance broke. I saw the corner of his mouth curve into a grin before I looked away.

I couldn't remember anything that happened in class after that. The next thing I knew was that the bell rang and _he_ was out of the classroom in a flash. I felt as though I should check and see if I smelled. I made my way to second period—Calculus, my worst nightmare—barely aware of my surroundings. Not a very good idea, given my vast hospital records, but I must have gotten the help of several guardian angels today, because I made it to class without falling. I did bump into several people, but I managed to stay up on my feet.

I surveyed the room for an empty seat when my eyes locked with those same amazing eyes that captivated me on first period.

_What's wrong with me?_

They were golden at first, but when another student rushed past me and stirred the air, they turned onyx once again. I stood frozen like a deer caught in the headlights. He stared right back at me with the most seductive half-grin on his face and nodded slightly to the side. It took me several seconds to realize that he was gesturing at the empty seat next to him, silently inviting me to sit next to him.

"Please take your seat, Ms. Swan," I heard the teacher tell me.

It was so unexpected that I almost jumped. I must have missed him coming in.

_This is not good. I need to focus if I want to pass Calculus._

I nodded at the teacher, feeling my cheeks burning as I made my way to the only empty seat left—next to my trance-inducing god-like creature.

w.W.w

Two hours later, at lunch, I sat down with Jessica and the gang, feeling overwhelmed. _He_ was in each and every one of my classes. Worse, somehow, he had managed to sit next to me in both my Spanish and History classes. He didn't make any attempts to speak to me, for which I was grateful. I wasn't sure I would have been able to answer him if he did.

Things were just plain weird. I had the same odd feeling that I had had after my accident last year, a hunch that something wasn't quite right, but I couldn't pinpoint it.

"Bella, you've been awfully quiet," Mike said, giving me a small nudge with his elbow.

"She's always quiet, Mike," Eric answered him. "That's kind of Bella's thing, you know." He threw a chip from his tray at him.

"Hey!" Mike yelped as said chip hit him right in the face before he could duck.

I saw Mike looking down at his tray, and I knew that they were headed for a food fight and that I might be caught in the middle. Eric wasn't known for his aim—that shot at Mike was a lucky one.

"Mike, don't even think about it!" Jessica threatened. She sat on his other side and apparently reached the same conclusion as I did.

"Fine," Mike said with a grimace. I heard him mumble, "party pooper," under his breath after that, which earned him a smack on the head from her and made him yelp again.

_You go girl!_ I encouraged her in my mind. Maybe there was still hope for her and Mike.

"So, anyway, what's on your mind, Bella?" Eric asked me.

"I thought you said being quiet was my _thing_ ," I teased.

"Yeah, but you're usually 'I'm-thinking' quiet; today you're 'I'm-not-here' quiet. So, spill."

I rolled my eyes. "There's nothing to spill," I lied and blushed.

"Bella, you couldn't lie even if your life depended on it," Eric teased me right back.

"It's nothing, really."

"Well, it looks like a very interesting 'nothing', Bella," Jessica said. "You're as red as a tomato..."

_God, I hate my easy blushes._

"...and there's a certain someone who's been staring at you for the entire lunch time," Jessica continued.

I looked at her with surprise, but Mike beat me to the punch. "Who's staring at her?"

Jessica's face fell. She didn't like when he went all protective about me, and honestly, neither did I.

"None of your business, Mike," I told him, even though I was already searching the cafeteria hall, trying to see who might be staring at me.

"Enough about _Bella_ ," Lauren interfered, sneering my name. "I want to talk about the new kids. Have you seen them? They are _gorgeous_!"

I had to roll my eyes at her. _Well, question answered; she still hates my guts._ I tuned her and Jessica out as they talked about two of the new boys in school, Jasper and Emmett. Apparently each of them shared a class with Lauren and she was on cloud nine because of that. I was about to give up and attribute Jessica's remark to her overactive imagination when my eyes interlocked with _him_.

He was sitting at a table with three other people, whom I assumed to be his foster siblings since I didn't recognize either of the two boys or the girl and knew everyone who went to my high school if not by name than surely by face.

His eyes appeared to be golden now. I didn't know how I could have known that— the distance between where I sat and his table was way too distant to see the color of his eyes—but somehow I just knew.

_Dr. Cullen has golden eyes as well_.

That thought put an immediate end to my staring at him. I dropped my eyes to my tray and felt the heat rising up my face. Thoughts about my last encounter with Dr. Cullen were the last thing I wanted _his_ eyes to remind me of.

w.W.w

"You are an idiot!" I groaned, looking into the rear view mirror.

I was sitting inside the cabin of my truck in the completely empty parking lot of the school. I stalled purposefully after gym in the girls' locker room until I was sure everyone had left. I was already chastising myself inwardly throughout the day for ogling _him_ like a bloody groupie. It didn't make me feel any better or ogle him any less, so I thought I might try doing that out loud.

"You are a complete and utter fool!" I said, staring at my own reflection.

Nope, that didn't work either.

I leaned my head on the steering wheel, trying my best not to succumb to the urge of banging it. It would only result in giving me a headache, and seeing as I already had one, there wasn't really any use in making it worse.

My mind kept creeping back to the conversation—if you can even call it that—I had had with him during biology.

_The teacher was already in class when he walked in. He gave the teacher, Mr. Banner, a slip of paper and Mr. Banner handed him a book. It was only then that I realized that the only empty seat in the room was next to me. I almost groaned._ This can't be happening _, I thought while trying my best to keep my eyes averted from him._

_He sat down, and Mr. Banner began his lesson._

" _Hello," he said in a quiet melodic voice after a few minutes of silence._

_I turned to look at him without even thinking about it._

" _My name is Edward Cullen." He smiled. It was the same crooked smile he gave me earlier that day, and I felt myself melt in my place. It was even worse than his eyes. The full power of his smile dazzled me beyond the ability of speech._

" _I didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier. I'm new in town." He continued to speak when I didn't say anything._

_I blushed fiercely and turned my head away from him, allowing my hair fall over my shoulder. I was hoping that he might not notice the telltale redness on my cheeks. Besides, if I wanted to be able to form any coherent reply I needed to keep myself away from his gaze._

" _I'm Bella Swan," I mumbled, barely loud enough for him to hear. "Welcome to Forks," I said, trying to be polite._ Great going, Swan, very smooth _. I felt like kicking myself. I was sure I've heard him chuckle._

Neither of us spoke after that awkward introduction, but that didn't mean that my eyes weren't drawn to him of their own accord. It was like he was a magnet and my eyes were made of iron. I knew he noticed my glances because each time I saw the corner of his mouth tilt upwards.

There was no way I could survive another day with him in my every class, let alone the entire year. Worse, not only was he in my every class, but he also sat next to me in each and every one of them.

I groaned, and this time I _did_ bang my head against the steering wheel.

_Ouch._ I rubbed my forehead and suddenly remembered a joke Charlie loved to use whenever anyone complains about a headache; "What is the best way to get rid of a headache? A ten pound hammer on your foot. You are guaranteed to forget all about the pain in your head."

Yeah, I didn't think it was funny either, but Jake thought it was hilarious.

_Speaking of Jake...I haven't talked to him in ages_.

I thought about it for a few moments, trying to remember when was the last time I talked to him. It must have been at least a month ago if not longer.

I turned the key in the ignition and the engine roared to life.

_Good thing I hurt my left wrist and not my right, or Charlie would never have let me drive_ , I thought as I turned to leave the parking lot. _Nothing stops traffic like a police car_.

w.W.w

"Bella? What are you doing here?"

That was the first thing that came out of Jacob's mouth when I parked my truck on the muddy driveway next to his house. It was a reasonable question to ask, but the tone he used caught me off guard. It was as if he was...afraid?

"Hi Jake, nice to see you too," I said, stepping out of the truck. "I'm fine, thank you for asking. How are you? Had a nice summer?"

He shifted his weight from one foor to the other, and that was when I noticed the way he was dressed. He was barefoot, wearing only a pair of cutoff jeans and no shirt. _I know we're still officially in the summer, but it's not THAT warm._

"I've had...an eventful summer," he said, frowning.

"What's with the frown, Jake?" I asked. "You're not still sick are you?" I knew mono was no fun, being sick never was, but he looked fine, more than fine, actually; he looked great.

"I'm not sick," he answered.

I noticed that he didn't say he was well, despite his appearance. _He's changed so much since the last time I had seen him_ , I noted to myself. It looked like he got even taller, as if he had hit his growth spurt and just shot up and gained a hell of a lot of muscles.

"Congratulations on the hair cut, by the way," I said conversationally.

"Thanks." He seemed to be talking through gritted teeth. "But you still didn't answer my question." He folded his arms over his naked chest, and I saw his muscles contract as if he was trying to hold himself together. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm sorry, I know I should have called first, but it was a spur of the moment decision." I was getting worried and began biting my lip, a nervous habit. I couldn't understand why he was so hostile towards me.

"Yeah, you _should_ have called," he said curtly.

"I'm sorry," I murmured, looking away from him.

I suddenly got the feeling that he was hiding something from me, and at that same moment I noticed Paul—one of Jake's friends that I met during the summer—coming out from behind Jake's house. It appeared as though he was inside Jake's garage. Just like Jake, he was also barefoot and bare-chested.

"Hi Bella, what are you doing here?" he asked, and it was the same unfriendly tone that Jake had used earlier. He stood on Jake's left-hand side, a little behind him, and folded his arms over his chest, imitating Jake's posture perfectly, right up to the facial expression.

They both appeared...concerned? Worried?

_How odd._

"Hi Paul," I answered him, my eyes darting between the two teenagers who looked much beyond their sixteen years of age physically. "I just thought I'd drop by and say hi, I haven't seen you in a while." _Not since Billy said Jake had mono and I thought..._

I froze as soon as I remembered my thoughts that day. _No way, it was just a silly thought..._

_Wasn't it?_

"We've been busy," Jake answered me.

"Busy," I repeated, trying to sort my thoughts. I looked at the two carefully.

_Is it just me or do they look a little...disheveled?_

"Yes, busy," Paul chanted. "And we're still busy, so why don't you go back home, little girl?"

"Back off, Paul!" Jake barked at the same time as I shrieked, "Excuse me?"

"Sorry, Jake," Paul mumbled and looked down. There was something about the gesture that reminded me of a puppy being scolded by its owner. _Or maybe of a wife being scolded by her beating husband...Hmm..._

"Apologize," Jake commanded, and for a moment I thought he was speaking to me; however, once I looked up, I saw that he was facing Paul and not me.

"I'm sorry, Bella," said Paul, sounding resentful rather than apologetic and then he glanced at Jake as if saying 'happy now?'

There was something about their behavior that told me there was more to their relationship than just friends. _I wonder, how much more than 'just friends' they are?_

"Apology accepted." I was never one to hold grudges. "So I see you got rid of that mono." _Very subtle..._

Paul looked at Jake, surprise written all over his face and took a step back as if being close to Jake would get him infected.

"Hmm...yeah, I did." Jake's frown deepened. "I heard from Billy that you were also sick."

"I was. Stomach flu, nothing serious." I shrugged. I wanted to go right ahead and ask him, but I didn't feel comfortable with Paul around. _He might be Jake's...but he was making me tense._ I stared at Paul for a few seconds, hoping that he would get the message, but he didn't move. He just resumed his position next to Jake. "So I can't talk to you in private anymore?" I asked bluntly, still annoyed with Paul.

"Anything you want to say to Jake you can say in front of me," Paul said. "It's not like he won't tell me once you're gone."

I got a very nasty mental image at that point, one that included Jake and Paul in a bedroom in more detail than I would have liked to have, all thanks to their half-naked appearance in front of me.

"Paul, give us a few minutes," Jake said.

They looked at each other for several moments, as though communicating with their eyes, but eventually Paul muttered, "Fine. I'll see you later," and then turned away and left us alone.

"Nice friend you got there, Jake," I said, trying not to put too much emphasis on the word 'friend'.

"We're cool." He shrugged.

"Oh." _So THAT is what they call it nowadays?_

"Well, we're alone now. What did you want to talk about?" And there again there was this sad note to his tone, as if he was hiding something, something that he was ashamed of. _Maybe he's just afraid of my reaction?_

I decided that I should let him know that it doesn't bother me, even if his choice of a partner was a very rude Paul, he was still my friend.

"Look, I can see you're trying to hide it from me," I began, and I saw him look at me with confusion, "and I just wanted to let you know that I'm okay with it." I saw his eyes widen in what could either be terror or shock, or maybe both, "I'm not going to tell anyone, I promise."

"You better not!" He said through gritted teeth, his whole body began to shake.

"I won't." I was quick to assure him, "But I'm still your friend and I'm here if you need to talk. I know you have Paul—"

"You know about Paul?" He cut me off with eyes as wide as saucers.

"Well, it was quite obvious," I defended myself.

"OBVIOUS?" he screeched.

"Well, yeah. I'm sorry," I said honestly. "You two weren't too discrete. I guess that Billy doesn't know?"

"What do you mean we weren't _discrete_?" He spat the words out as if they were poison.

"Of course Billy doesn't know," I muttered to myself. "Otherwise, I would have heard it from Charlie." I saw that he was shaking so heard that his image was almost a blur. "Jake, calm down. I won't tell Billy. Your secret is safe with me. But I would suggest that you do tell him; it will be easier for you that way. It's better when you have the support of your family through this."

"Jacob Black calm down!" The order came from behind Jake and I saw a man walking towards us. He was a little taller than Jake and almost as wide and it took me a moment to remember his name—Sam. He was the one who told us the legends of the tribe that night around the bonfire. Sam was also barefoot and shirtless. _What's wrong with the men on this reservation, don't they own shoes at all?_

"Sam, she _knows,"_ Jake said.

"You told her?" Sam asked with fury in his eyes.

"He didn't have to tell me anything!" I shouted. "I figured it out myself."

"How?" Sam barked, but this time he was looking at me, so the question was obviously not directed at Jake.

"It wasn't that hard." _Do they really think that I'm THAT blind? Come on, give me some credit!_ "The mono got me suspicious, but once I saw him with Paul it didn't take long to put two and two together."

"Jake, calm down, NOW!" Sam's voice had a commanding note to it, much like Jake's voice earlier when he spoke to Paul.

_Speak of the devil_...Paul appeared from behind Jake's house again. He put his hand on Jake's shoulder once he was close enough to stand next to him.

Jake took a few deep breaths and slowly his shaking lessened.

Sam put his hand on Jake's chest and looked him in the eyes. "Calm down, Jake," he said in a much softer tone. _Not him too?_

I took a step towards Jake—it was done without thought—I just wanted to give him the comfort of a friendly touch. He looked terrible, shaking like a leaf as he was.

Sam stopped me. "Stay away, Bella, I don't want you to get hurt."

"You can't stop me from being his friend!" I yelled at him. "And take your hands of off him."

"It's too dangerous—"

"Bullshit!" I cut him off.

"Bella, if he phases with you nearby—" Paul began but was quickly cut off by Sam shouting, "Paul, shut up!"

"Phases?" I asked. _What the hell did that mean?_

"That's what we call—" Paul tried again, but again Sam cut him off. "Paul, shut the hell up!"

"Will you let him speak? He's not your bloody puppy!" I yelled at Sam.

Their reaction was anything but expected. Paul began to laugh. Jake stopped shaking and had an amused expression on his face. Sam just stared at me, blinking a few times as if trying to understand something.

"What?" I asked.

This time Jake joined the laugh and Sam was the one with the amused expression.

"What's so funny?"

"Well, technically...he is," Jake said, still snickering.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"What the hell are _you_ talking about?" Jake threw the question back at me.

"Do _they_ know?" I asked. I didn't want to 'out' him to his friends.

"We are the same as Jake," Paul blurted out at the same time as Sam shouted, "Paul!" with warning in his tone.

"What?" I asked again.

"Werewol—" Paul was cut off with a smack on his head from Jake and a shout from Sam, "For heaven's sake, Paul, shut the fuck up!"

"Werewolf?" I whispered. I knew that this time it were my eyes that were wide as saucers.

"So you _didn't_ know!" Paul said with a triumph in his voice, earning him another smack on the head from Jake. "Hold on," Paul turned to me. "If you _didn't_ know, what _did_ you think?"

My face changed colors from white to scarlet red, and Jake's eyes widened in realization before he began to laugh. Sam and Paul stared at him as if he had lost his mind completely.

I turned to face my truck, leaning my head on the closed door. _God, please kill me now_. I had no doubt that Jake understood what I was thinking.

_Why does this keep happening to me?_

* * *

**Poor Bella, she was off by miles...**

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	13. Thirst

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Edward**

_Alice_.

I smiled as I thought about the little black-haired sister I had gained this summer. I was sitting on a tree branch overlooking Bella's bedroom, much like I have been doing for the past few nights. Alice was right; I _did_ feel like a stalker, but there was something so captivating about the young girl that I couldn't keep away.

I saw her take care of her father, much like a mother would take care of her child. She made him dinner and worried about him when he was late coming home. They never talked much, but I saw the love Charlie Swan had for his daughter in his every thought. He was worried about her, worried that she missed her mother, worried that she was spending too much time alone in the house and not enough with her friends.

I didn't need to stay here tonight—I already had a shirt of hers stuffed in the pocket of my jacket with her scent all over it—but I didn't want to leave. It was only the third night I had spent outside her bedroom, but I had already learned that the girl was talking in her sleep. It was the only chance I had to look inside her mind, and the devil himself couldn't keep me from sitting outside her window and listen to the steady heartbeat and the occasional murmur coming from the room.

The burning ache in my throat was still there, and it was just as bad as the first time I smelled her. Her scent was all over me now, and Emmett had way too much fun teasing me about it, but Alice had been right about this as well; it was getting easier to withstand the appeal of her blood with her scent constantly present around me. However, it was not enough to ease the burning curiosity I had for everything Bella.

I wanted to know more about her. I _needed_ to know more about her. And yet, I had to wait.

I felt the warming of the air long before the sun rose. The devil may not be able to pull me away from her bedroom window, but what the devil could not do, the shining sun could.

"I will see you soon, my Bella," I whispered before jumping down from the tree and making my way back up the street and into the secluded house that I was now calling my home.

w.W.w

After we had arrived to the house on that first day, Alice and Esme had taken it upon themselves to turn Carlisle's house into a home. He didn't seem to object, but something told me that he really didn't have a choice in the matter.

Alice may be small, but she was like a mini-tornado. I had learned that one never bets against Alice, not unless he stands something to gain from losing the bet. So Carlisle gave the two ladies free rein over the house, with the sole condition that they not change anything about his study or his bedroom. Alice agreed, but I heard her thoughts redecorating his bedroom even before she was out of the house with Esme.

I didn't say anything to him. It was yet another thing I'd learned about Alice: when she wanted something, she found a way to get it. I saw that Jasper's thoughts mirrored my own, and we shared a smile between us, watching the two ladies of the house leave.

Jasper was a solider, just like me, and that gave us an understanding of each other that did not require words, be them verbal or mental. He was very protective of Alice as was to be expected since she was his mate, but once he saw that I was not a threat to her but another guardian who would stake his life for her, he accepted me with no further doubt.

Apparently, our smile had not been as discreet as we had intended it to be. No sooner had the girls gotten past the front door, we heard Carlisle ask quietly, "There is no chance for my bedroom to retain its current décor, is there?" His eyes were following Esme as she got into the car as he spoke.

"No," both Jasper and I said at the same time.

"I thought so." Carlisle sighed. "There is no stopping Alice once she sets her mind on something." He said that with a smile and so much care in his mind that I knew he was not upset about the matter. He truly loved Alice in a fatherly manner.

"Well, it's going to be sunny today; how about we go get us a few grizzlies?" Emmett suggested from behind us. "Or do you ladies feel like staring at the front lawn all day?"

I saw the intention form in his mind just a fraction of a second before he launched his fist in my direction, but it was enough time for me to dodge him.

"Cheater," Emmett muttered. "If you weren't cheating, I _know_ I could take you."

I just laughed. "I'm not cheating."

"Then turn it off and let's take a few rounds outside."

"I can't turn it off, Emmett." I shook my head, still smiling. My gift was just a part of me as his physical strength; there was no way I could just turn it off.

"I know, I know," Emmett said. "Well, you can't blame a guy for trying, can you?"

"Well, I can't _blame_ you..." I trailed off and was about to pounce Emmett when Carlisle's laughter stopped me.

"Well, _kids_ , I'm off to the hospital for my shift. Try to keep the walls still standing for when the girls come back."

"Sure, Carlisle," I said.

"We'll do our best," said Emmett, his eyes glued to me.

"I'll try and keep them in check," Jasper winked at Carlisle, "but I'm not making any promises."

"You do remember that the sun is out today, right?" Emmett asked Carlisle.

"The Mercedes has tinted windows and I'll be inside all day," Carlisle replied. "I'll see you guys tonight."

We bid our goodbyes to him and decided to go for a hunt away from the town. Emmett was happy to find himself a grizzly while Jasper and I settled for smaller game. Each of us hunted alone; the defensive instincts to protect your prey were too strong and a vampire would attack anyone near him who wasn't their mate, so we set a gather point to meet once we were done. It was late afternoon when Emmett showed up at the gathering point. I was the first one to arrive and Jasper was still hunting, so Emmett sat down next to me.

"So what's the deal with you and that human girl?" he asked after several minutes of silence.

"No deal."

"Oh, come on, you don't expect me to believe that, do you?" He chuckled. "You reek, man."

"I know." I shrugged. "But if it makes it more likely that I _won't_ kill her on her first day of school, then you're gonna have to suck it up."

"I thought you were the expert of sucking up." Emmett laughed.

I punched him.

That's all it took. A moment later, we were rolling around like two teenage human boys.

I heard Jasper's thoughts as he approached us. _You two are worse than newborns..._

"I'm still not sure that Emmett here isn't one," I answered him, dodging a swing.

"Well, he sure is as strong as a newborn," Jasper said once he was within hearing range.

"Edward's no fun; he cheats. How about a round Jaz?"

"No way, Em. Alice would kill me if I ruin these clothes."

"Oh, afraid of shorty, are we?" Emmett wiggled his brows.

"I have my reasons," Jasper said with a smile. As soon as I saw the direction of his thoughts, I quickly focused on those of Emmett; there were some images I did _not_ want to have in my mind.

"So that's what they call it: _reasons_ , eh?" Emmett grinned.

"A gentleman doesn't kiss and tell."

"You don't need to; we can hear it all... _Cowboy_." Emmett roared with laughter.

_Thank god vampires can't blush,_ Jasper thought and his eyes flew to mine. _Don't you dare say a word!_

"You're not as scary as though think Jasper." I chuckled.

_Oh really?_ he thought and launched himself at me.

Alice wasn't happy. All three of us ruined our shirts...and pants, for that matter.

w.W.w

That night, I was once again outside Bella's house. She was still awake, despite it being over an hour past midnight, so I sat on the tree branch overlooking her bedroom window. Her father was asleep already as was most of the neighborhood. Bella was lying on her bed, reading.

_The girl likes her classics._ She held a worn copy of _Pride and Prejudice_. Her heartbeat was steady and her breathing even. I watched the movement of her chest at it rose and fell with each breath she took. She wasn't as voluptuous as some of the female vampires in Volterra, far from it, but she definitely had curves.

_She's beautiful_. It wasn't the first time I came to that conclusion. Her heart-shaped face, pale skin, and full pink lips that she always nibbled when she was nervous haunted me whenever I was away from her.

I stayed on that branch for another hour before Bella finally stopped reading and went to sleep. Nothing could be as still as a vampire. it was as natural to us as breathing was for humans. It was movement, the subconscious fidgeting of humans, that was unnatural. It was actually a pleasant task. _With one hell of a view_ , I thought with a smile.

Once I was sure Bella was fast asleep, I sneaked inside the house and took one of her shirts from the hamper in the downstairs laundry room, putting the one from yesterday in its place. I didn't breathe until I was outside of her house. It was still difficult breathing in a closed space that was saturated with her scent. _Better to be safe than sorry_.

I stayed outside her window throughout the night right up until the first morning light started creeping from the horizon. Leaving her every morning became harder with every passing night. It was almost physically painful.

Alice was waiting for me on the front porch when I arrived back at the large secluded house.

_Hang in there, Edward. Only a few more days and you can meet her in person._

I sighed. Alice could read my mood better than Jasper, it seemed.

_Come, I have a surprise for you._

"A surprise?" I raised a brow. Her thoughts were excited, but they did not reveal anything of importance. She was learning to block me. Surprises were a rare occurrence for me, and they were usually not of the good sort.

"It's a good one. Come on!"

She danced her way through the front doors, and I followed.

I didn't even have a chance to greet everyone; as soon as I walked through the door, I saw it. A black grand piano stood in the small area next to the main living room.

Alice was almost jumping in excitement, her eyes sparkling with joy. _I knew you'd like it_.

"I do." I smiled, my eyes fixed on the instrument. I hadn't played in years. I didn't bother buying one when I lived with David, and the atmosphere in my last years with the Volturi was anything but inspiring.

_I'd love to hear you play again_ , Esme thought gently. She stood at the top of the stairs and leaned on the wall, watching me.

I walked over to the piano and sat on the bench. I lifted the lid and hovered above the ivory keys with my fingers, barely touching them.

"It won't bite you, Edward," Emmett said from the living room. The TV was on, and it sounded like he was watching a baseball game.

I smiled and began playing. I chose a jazzy piece that suited Emmett in my mind, it was fun and playful.

"Sounds familiar..." Alice murmured. I saw her running several names in her mind, none of which were right.

"Scott Joplin," I answered her, still playing. "It's called Maple Leaf Rag."

"I like it," she said.

I saw in her mind that she imagined herself in a jazz club, dressed in a turn of the century fashion, holding a long cigarette in one hand and a glass of whiskey in the other. "Yeah, that's about right."

When the piece ended, I decided to go to something a bit faster: The Flight of The Bumblebee, another classic. The piano was tuned perfectly, and with my vampire-enhanced speed, the piece was one of my favorite to play.

I saw Alice's thoughts change: she still imagined that same bar, but now it was filled with thousands of bees.

I began to laugh.

_It's nice to hear you laugh again, Edward. It's been too long,_ Esme thought.

I nodded in agreement.

"You can play with the piano later. I want you to see your new room." Alice pulled me away from the bench and up the stairs.

My room faced the back of the house and with the glass wall that showed a breathtaking view of the forest. The girls did a wonderful work in designing and decorating it. The only item out of place was the large four-poster canopy bed in the middle of the room.

"What is that for?" I asked with a raised brow.

There was only one reason for a vampire to own a bed, and that reason didn't apply to me. _Or did it?_

"Oh, get your head out of the gutter, Edward," Alice scoffed. "She might want to stay over for the night, and I wanted you to be prepared." Alice didn't need to elaborate on who 'she' was.

"I have come to realize that there really is no point in betting against you, Alice." I smiled. "So I'm not going to. You did a great job, thank you, for the piano as well."

She beamed, her smile was brighter than the sun itself, and although I saw the traces of smugness in her mind, I was happy that she was smiling.

w.W.w

_Edward Cullen_. I tasted my new name in my mind. I had been Tony de Volturi for many years, and I only recently got used to being Edward Masen, but here I was, changing my name yet again. At least it had a nice ring to it.

As far as the authorities in Forks were concerned, I was carrying the Cullen name since I adopted by Carlisle's brother at the age of seven. All four of us shared it now—Alice, Jasper, Emmett, and I—while Esme chose to use her maiden name, Platt.

Jasper proved to have some very useful connections as well as skillful hands when it came to forging papers. He came up with all of the necessary documents when Carlisle and Esme enrolled us at Forks High.

Esme chose to be a stay-at-home mom, in further support of our cover, so Carlisle would be able to continue practicing medicine and "provide for the family." Not that any of us needed providing for, but it felt... _right,_ being a family.

I remember picking up that same emotion from Carlisle's thoughts when he had first suggested that we move in with him. He had also sensed that this was how things were supposed to be. I had seen in his memories that Alice had spoken of us—including Rosalie—after they had met, and I noticed the longing in his thoughts as well as the sense of rightness. He was lonely for too many years, and he finally had a family to share his existence with, and possibly even a mate.

I still couldn't shake the feeling that something was very odd.

_Okay, so things HAVE been more than a little odd_. I had to admit it. _First, Esme gets some crazy vision of a woman who's supposed to be dead for more than seventy years but knows way too much for comfort. Then we meet a psychic-pixie that tells me that Bella is my mate in this life—that is, unless I kill her on the first chance I get—and that we're the long-overdue-family of Carlisle Cullen. And lastly, that the way the future turns out is all up to me and Bella. Just great._

_The only thing that would top it off would be a visit from Aro._

_Shut up! Don't even go there._ I forced myself away from that line of thought and back into reality.

First day of high school, senior year. It would be the second time I go through high school, but with several degrees in different fields, including biology, literature, and history, I doubted that any of the teachers here would be able to capture my interest.

_But that's not the real reason you're there_ , I reminded myself.

Alice was right... _again_. Even if it did made me feel like a stalker, and a perverted one at that, having desensitized myself over the past two weeks did serve to make me feel more comfortable about being in the same room with Bella.

_Well, I'm about to put that theory to the test. As far as I can remember, I share first period English with her._

We arranged to meet at lunch and turned our separate ways.

As I walked to my first class, I could hear that the story we decided upon—posing as Carlisle's foster children—was already catching on. It was no wonder that in a town as small as Forks we were the hot news on everyone's minds, and as much as I didn't want unnecessary attention drawn to us, this time it helped in determining that no one doubted the story.

Bella was already seated when I walked into the classroom. I took a deep breath when I passed through the door, preparing myself. The ache was there, not as bad as it was on that first time that I smelled her, but the room didn't have a chance to saturate with her scent yet, so it would only get worse.

_It's time to jump in the water_.

Bella seemed to be deep in thought when I walked over to her. It still amazed me that she was so quiet, both verbally and mentally. While the rest of the students piling into the room were busy chatting amongst themselves, she just sat there, in her own world. My curiosity piqued once again. It was one of the few times when I really wanted to hear another person's thoughts, and it was just my luck that she was a mental mute.

"Excuse me, is this seat taken?" I asked once I was standing next to her as she still didn't seem to be aware of my presence.

"Sure," she answered automatically without looking up.

_I think I felt my ego take a bruise,_ I thought with an inward smile, but then she lifted her eyes and our gazes locked. I sat down on the chair without breaking the contact. It was the first time I had seen her eyes up close. They were deep brown, the color of expensive coffee and exotic chocolate. I could look into them for hours and never tire.

Up until now, I had always considered brown eyes to be boring and common. Hers were anything but. Neither of us spoke as we stared into each other's eyes. I took in a small breath, tasting her on my tongue. I knew my eyes darkened as the demon inside me roared. It wasn't as hard to control my thirst as it was on that first night. I had hunted last night in preparation, and this time, her scent did not come as a shock—I was expecting it, almost welcoming it—but I still had to clench my jaw and stop breathing; another taste of her scent just might be too much.

_Take it easy, Edward. One baby step at a time,_ I told myself.

I tried deciphering the emotions flickering in her eyes. There were so many and they changed rapidly that I couldn't catch all of them. I saw attraction in her eyes and heard her heartbeat quicken. I saw curiosity, and I saw fear. All were natural, of course, but it saddened me that she felt afraid. Fear was the very last thing I wanted her to feel, so I broke our eye contact and pretended to pay attention to the lesson. From the corner of my eye, I saw another emotion pass through her eyes before she averted them—longing.

_There is hope_ , I thought and smiled. I heard her heartbeat spike at that moment and knew she had seen me smile. _Yes, there is definitely hope._

I did not look at her or speak to her again during that lesson, but I was acutely aware of her presence next to me: the warmth of her body so close to mine; the still-quick heartbeat that both pleased and tortured me at the same time; the way her eyes would begin to travel in my direction only to snap back to the front of the class a moment before her gaze could set upon me.

As the lesson neared its end, it became almost too hard to sit next to her. My inner animal was rattling in its cage, and I felt the bars begin to bend. As soon as the bell rang, I was out of the room, desperate for fresh air.

I was relieved to feel the cold air outside filter into my lungs. The scent of dozens of human teenagers did not bother me in the least. No one smelled as good as _her_. I walked very slowly—even for human pace—to my next class, Calculus. I followed Bella in the minds of others in the hallways of the school. She seemed distracted; she bumped into several people on her way to class, but she always managed to keep herself up on her feet.

My thoughts went back to the incident Carlisle told me about yesterday. She fell on her left hand and sprained it. Apparently, she had a very long medical history of falling and injuring herself. I cringed at the memory of the accident at the beginning of last year that Carlisle had recalled. It filled me with the most gut wrenching fear to think that I was so close to losing her before I even met her.

I thanked God for keeping her safe up until now before I even registered the intention in my mind. Bella had become an important part of my life, and we had yet to even have a conversation. I knew the sound of her voice from her talks with her father, but she had yet to speak to me, and I couldn't wait for it to happen. There was just something about her that was unique, and it had nothing to do with her scent of the fact that I could not tap into her thoughts.

I reached the classroom before her and chose a seat in the back again. I watched the entrance like a hawk, following the thoughts of the students in the hallway for her image. As soon as she walked through the door, our eyes met. A student rushed past her and stirred the air at the exact moment as I took a breath, bringing her scent to me. I felt my eyes darken immediately and knew that she would not miss it—Carlisle had warned me that she was very perceptive, and judging from her attempt at photographing him, she was on the right track with her suspicions already. I had to clench my jaw and fist my hands, digging my fingernails into my palms in order to keep me seated.

She stood frozen, eyes wide with both shock and fear. That was all it took for me to regain my control. I never wanted to see _that_ look on her face again, especially not if I was the cause of it.

Bella didn't even notice that the teacher came in until he spoke to her directly, telling her to take her seat. By that time, the class had been filled with students and the only available seat left was next to me. She jumped slightly at the sound of his voice and made her way to me in a state of daze. Her cheeks turned the most beautiful color of pink; she was clearly embarrassed.

She avoided me throughout the lesson, as well as during the next two. I had no doubt that Alice had a hand in the fact that Bella and I shared every single class, but I made sure to make the best of it as I arranged for Bella to sit next to me during both Spanish and History.

We hadn't spoken, which was probably for the best as I was using the time I had near her to accustom myself to her scent in the closed atmosphere of a classroom. We didn't make eye contact either, partly because I didn't want to see the fear in her eyes again and partly because she purposefully avoided looking at me. Neither made me any less aware of her. It was now more than simply her scent, it was everything about her. Even the way she fidgeted was captivating and endearing. Every nerve in my body was highly aware that she was sitting very close to me. My body ached for her in ways that had nothing to do with the burn in my throat.

I wanted to hold her in my arms. I wanted to feel the softness of her skin. I wanted to taste her bottom lip, the one that she'd been nibbling whenever she was nervous. I wanted to spend time with her and learn everything there is to know about her. I wanted to share her secrets, her dreams, her hopes, her future...

"Stop acting like a love sick puppy." Emmett elbowed me.

We were sitting in the cafeteria, and each of us had a tray with food—that smelled awful and was nothing more than a prop—in front of us.

"I'm not a love sick puppy." I elbowed him back. The fact that he was able to catch me off guard only showed me how engrossed I was with Bella, and she wasn't in the room yet!

_Oh, you definitely are,_ Jasper thought.

"I am not," I said firmly.

Jasper raised his brow. _Do you want me to reflect your emotions back to you?_

He was already doing it as he spoke. Lust, curiosity, and longing assaulted me for several seconds before he stopped.

Alice rolled her eyes. Emmett burst into laughter, drawing the attention of the people in the nearby table. I shot them a glare, and their interest died instantly. As I turned my head back, I caught her scent in the air and moments later saw her walking into the cafeteria.

I completely ignored Alice, Jasper, and Emmett as I followed her with my gaze to her table. I frowned when I saw how little food was on her tray. _It couldn't be enough to sustain her, could it?_

She was very quiet while her friends kept the conversation alive. When one of the boys—Mike—noted this aloud, I learned that this was not her normal behavior. _Was she thinking about me?_ I was arrogant enough to think that the answer might me 'yes', especially because she blushed when asked why she was so quiet.

I knew my 'surveillance' of her would not go unnoticed for long, so I wasn't surprised to hear one of the girls told her that she was being watched. I didn't like Mike's protective tone or Lauren's sneer in response, but Bella didn't seem to mind either one of them as her gaze searched through the cafeteria to find out who was staring at her. I waited patiently, my eyes fixed on her face. She was too far to see the color of my eyes, so maybe this time she would not be scared when our eyes locked.

It took her several minutes as she passed over most of the hall before she finally looked at me. I kept my eyes locked with hers. There was no fear in them, as far as I could see, but she averted her eyes seconds later and a telltale blush spread over her cheeks.

_No fear_. I noted again with satisfaction at the same time as my intrigue stirred and there was nothing I wanted more at that moment than to know what she was thinking that made her blush like that.

w.W.w

_How are you holding up?_ Alice asked me as she walked me over to my next class; hers was in the same building. Jasper shared his next one with Emmett on the other side of the school.

"Not too bad," I said. "You were right. As much as it made me feel like a pervert, your advice helped." I saw the smile in her thoughts as well as on her face. There was nothing smug about it; she was truly happy that her plan had worked.

_She's going to be my best friend_. The thought escaped her. Clearly, it wasn't meant for me, so I did not respond to it.

We walked in silence for a few more moments. The human pace I was forced into was really getting on my nerves, and I was starting to become anxious for the day to end.

_Good luck in class,_ Alice said when we reached her class.

I smiled at her and waved her goodbye.

The teacher was already in class when I walked in. I handed him the attendance slip to sign and took the textbook that he handed me in return. I hid a smile when I walked over to take my seat next to Bella. Yet again, it was the only available seat and we found ourselves sharing a table.

After several minutes of silence, I decided that it was time to introduce myself. She probably already knew my name, but it was the polite way to start up a conversation.

"Hello, my name is Edward Cullen." I smiled softly, being careful not to show any teeth. She turned to look at me, and again our eyes locked together as if there was some kind of force that kept them firmly in place. When she didn't say anything I continued to speak. "I didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier. I'm new in town."

I saw the color flare in her cheeks as she quickly broke the contact of our eyes and let her hair fall as a veil hiding her face. "I'm Bella Swan," she mumbled. It was so low that had I been human I might have missed it. "Welcome to Forks."

_Progress. From nothing to six whole words,_ I thought with an inward smile. She was so shy it was almost unbelievable. That was it, conversation-wise. She had kept her face firmly averted for the rest of the lesson, but just like before, I could always see her eyes wandering to the side, as if trying to steal a glance, before she caught herself and fixed her gaze back on the teacher.

I tried breathing several times during that lesson, and each time it felt as if a blazing sword was shoved into my throat. It was almost the end of the school day, with only gym left before school was over, but I was finding it harder to keep myself in control.

When the bell rang, I decided to skip gym and go for a hunt. I could no longer trust myself around Bella, and I was beginning to doubt my self-control around the other human teenagers, too. I hoped that Alice would see my decision, but I sent her a text just the same. I left the keys to the Volvo in her locker and made my way out of the school. As soon as I was far enough away for human eyes to catch me, I broke into a run.

_Tomorrow will be just as hard._

* * *

**So that's how it looked from Edward's point of view.**

**As always, thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	14. Wolves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

"I know I should be offended, but this is just too funny." Jake continued to giggle like a schoolgirl and shake his head. _If it wasn't so muddy, I imagine that he would be rolling on the floor._

Paul was staring at me. It was as if he thought that if he concentrated hard enough, he would be able to force me to talk. The only thing that I could concentrate on was the word 'werewolf'.

_What the hell does it mean? Okay, so I know the literal meaning of the word, but did he mean werewolf as in full moon, hairy beast, and sharp teeth? Werewolf as in the mythical creature?_

This was too much. I opened the door to my truck and climbed in. I needed time to think about...everything.

"Where are you going?" Paul called after me. He made a move to stop me but was held back by Sam.

"Leave her," Sam commanded. Whatever those boys were into, and the possibility of some sort of heavy drug came to my mind, Sam was clearly the leader of the gang.

_I don't know what they got you addicted to, Jake, but I promise you I will do everything I can to help,_ I vowed as I drove away.

w.W.w

"Dad, have you spoken to Billy lately?" I asked Charlie as I set the table for dinner.

After giving it much thought, I decided that the best way to handle this was first of all to find out how much Charlie knew about the matter. Jake mentioned that Billy knew—even though at the time, I thought he was speaking about him...um...batting for the other team—but it was worth a shot.

"Yeah, I talked to him last week. What is it, Bells?"

"Did he mention Jake by any chance?"

Charlie looked at me with a smile and a raised eyebrow. _Great, now he thinks I'm after Jake._

"I mean, did he mention Jake having any problems? Hanging out with the wrong crowd?" I tried again.

"No, he didn't say anything like that, why?" He frowned.

"Nothing really, just...um…"

"Just spit it out."

"I think Jake might be in trouble."

"What kind of trouble?"

"I don't really know. I went to visit him today after school, and I met some friends of his…"

"And?"

"Well, I think they might have been...high?"

"You think Jake's friends are doing drugs?"

I cringed. Hearing it being said out loud sounded even worse than thinking it. "No, I'm not saying that they were. But they just seemed to be a little...off."

"Which friends were those?"

"Paul and Sam."

"Sam?" Charlie stopped with his fork in midair and put it back on his plate. "Sam's a good kid, Bella. There is no way he's doing drugs. I've met him a few times when I was over at Billy's. Sam is not the kind of guy to be doing drugs."

"Okay, Dad." I dropped the subject, and Charlie went back to his dinner.

After the dishes were washed and dried, Charlie sat in front of the TV to watch the news and I went upstairs to my bedroom. Charlie seemed convinced that Sam wasn't doing any drugs, and I knew that he was just as sure about Jake. Jake wouldn't have been allowed within the same area code as me if Charlie had any reason to suspect him.

I began pacing in my bedroom. There wasn't that much space to be doing that—the distance between my bedroom window and the door was around six feet and that was the widest point of the room— but it had to do.

I felt as if reality had been suspended and I had found myself in a distorted version of Alice in Wonderland, playing the main role while not knowing the script. It wasn't the first time I felt things were weird, nor was it the first time I felt as though I had made a complete fool of myself, unfortunately.

I thought back, going over everything that had happened in the past year, trying to find where it all began. I thought about the most recent events: the fiasco with Jake earlier today; the odd reaction I had for Dr. Cullen's foster kid—Edward; the embarrassing ordeal with Dr. Cullen and the picture yesterday; the weird sensation I always had when I spoke to Dr. Cullen, as if I was replaying certain scenes over and over again; the movie night with Jake and Mike; the trip to Port Angeles when Jake had shown up at the last minute; the car accident in January...

"The accident!" I was only half-aware that I said that out loud. My eyes fell on the clock on my nightstand, it was almost midnight already. I listened carefully, the TV wasn't on, and I could hear the distinct sound of Charlie snoring from the other bedroom. I was so consumed with thoughts that I hadn't even heard him say goodnight to me.

I stopped pacing and sat on my bed.

"Everything started on that day. I'm sure of it." I wasn't talking to anyone in specific. Sometimes it helped me to hear things out loud to find the reasoning behind them. "I knew there was something wrong that day." I thought about that January morning almost a year ago.

_I woke up early to yet another cold day in Forks. Charlie was already out of the house. I drove to school slower than other days because the road was icy. The rain from last night froze in the low temperatures of the Olympic Peninsula and turned to ice. I parked my truck within safe distance from the other cars—the last thing I needed was to hit someone's car with my own. My truck was built like a tank and didn't really have a paint job to worry about; it was the other car I was worried about._

_I stepped slowly around my truck and noticed the new tires. Charlie must have gotten up really early that day to be able to change the tires. I was standing near the back on my truck when the squealing of breaks and skidding tires on ice drew my attention. For a moment, everything slowed down. I knew that the van was on a collision course with me and that I had no chance of getting out of the way in time. I was looking death in the eyes but I wasn't afraid._

I remember thinking how stupid I was, looking at the van skidding in my direction and not feeling afraid.

"Why wasn't I afraid?"

I closed my eyes and envisioned that day once again.

_The van was closing in on me. I heard shouts and screams, but my body was frozen..._

"What was I thinking about?"

I concentrated again.

"Someone was supposed to save me," I murmured. It was so low that it couldn't even qualify as a whisper. "Someone was supposed to pull me away from that van," I said a bit louder.

I was certain of it now that I thought about it. It felt so right that I couldn't have been wrong. Someone _was_ supposed to pull me away from that van.

"That's why it felt wrong when I woke up in the hospital! I wasn't supposed to be hurt that bad! Everything began on that day!" My tone was a little too loud, and I heard Charlie's snoring falter.

I waited a few minutes for him to go back into a deep sleep before I returned to my thoughts.

"No, I'm still missing something," I continued to think out loud. "There's more to it than that. Think Bella, think!" I stood up and began pacing again. "Where do I start? Well, the best place to start would be the person that was supposed to save me." It sounded logical to me, so I kept going with that line of thought. "Clearly whoever he was, he wasn't there. Why? Who was he? He's the key. I know it!" I was getting irritated. "He is the key!"

There was a noise outside the window, as if a branch snapped and something heavy fell from the tree to the ground. I ran to the window and looked outside. There was nothing but the darkness.

"I must be imagining things…" I sighed. It was late and I had school tomorrow. Not just school, but I also had to face the mysterious Edward Cullen first thing in the morning. I really needed my sleep if I wanted to be able to handle him.

w.W.w

**Edward**

I was stalking her again. I was well aware of that, but I couldn't help myself. I tried telling myself that there was really no need for me to continue doing this. I would be seeing her in school every day; I sat next to her in every class, for crying out loud. Her scent would be all over me whether I liked it or not...and I had to admit, at least to myself, that I did like it. I liked it a lot. But more than her scent, more than the song of her blood, I was too fascinated with her to stop my nightly visits.

Bella was pacing in her room when I arrived. I settled in the branches of the tree overlooking her bedroom window. She looked to be deep in thought and it sounded like she was talking to someone. I listened carefully; there was no one in the house other than her father, and he was deep in the land of dreams.

_She's talking to herself,_ I finally decided after a few moments.

She mentioned some kind of accident and that everything—whatever 'everything' was—had started on that day. From what she said, I could piece together that there was some kind of an accident that involved a van and her ending up in a hospital.

_I wonder if that's the accident that Carlisle mentioned before._ I made a mental note to ask him that the next time I spoke to him.

Bella looked so beautiful in the dim light of her bedroom. Her mahogany hair waved over her shoulders and down her back as she paced in the room; there was a red tint to it that I hadn't noticed before. The hunt earlier today had made little difference. Each breath I drew carried the smell of her blood to my lungs, and my throat burned. I was satiated physically, maybe even a little bloated, but her blood still made me thirsty.

Bella spoke of someone who was supposed to save her, and I assumed that she was still talking about the accident. Someone who wasn't there, someone who was supposed to be there but wasn't.

" _He is the key!_ " she all but shouted.

The shock of her words made me clench my fists, not a very smart idea, considering that one of my hands was holding the branch I was sitting on. It snapped, and had I been any slower in my reflexes, I would have found myself on the ground with broken limbs. As it was, my vampire instincts kicked in, and I landed gracefully on the ground instead and sprinted to the forest. I had no doubt that Bella would hear the snapping of the branch, and I could already hear her steps as she approached her window. She briefly looked out the window, but there was no way she could have seen me. Her human eyes were too weak.

I listened to her go through her nightly routine and waited for the light to go off. It didn't take long for her to finish and get to bed. Her heartbeat evened out and her breath slowed down soon after that. She was asleep.

I was contemplating going back to the tree versus going back to the house when I caught the smell of wet dog in the air and heard Bella's name being mentioned in someone's thoughts.

_Bella was just too funny. I can't believe she thought I was gay!_

I saw images of the forest in the mind of that person as well as the image of Bella. She was dressed in the same way as she had been in school today. In his memories, she was standing next to her truck, her cheeks pink. She was clearly embarrassed.

_I can't believe that you blurted out the truth, you idiot!_

The scorning tone came from a different mind, and not a moment later, the first speaker apologized.

_I'm sorry! I thought she already knew. Besides, you thought it was funny, too. You were almost crying like a baby girl, you were laughing so hard._

_Paul, Jake, cut it out you two. We have bigger problems than Bella._ A third voice joined the conversation. It was layered with much authority. He must have been the leader out of the three.

Paul and Jake both thought, ' _Sorry Sam,_ ' at the same time, giving me the name of the third speaker. But I still couldn't see who or where those three were. I searched the forest for the people to whom the thoughts belonged, but I didn't see anyone, so I continued to listen to their thoughts.

_What kind of problems, Sam?_ I still didn't know which one of the two was Paul and which one was Jake, so I didn't know which of them asked the question.

_We have several new bloodsuckers in town,_ Sam thought.

_What?_

In all three minds, I could see images of the forest, but no humans. They were talking to each other in their thoughts, but they were clearly not near each other; they were far enough away that they wouldn't see each other.

_Paul, tell him,_ Sam commanded.

_I caught their scent earlier today,_ Paul began to explain. _It wasn't just one new smell; there were at least four new ones on top of Dr. Leech's scent, maybe five. I couldn't be sure._

_Where was it?_ Jake asked.

The next thing Paul thought was a part of the forest further up north in which Jasper, Emmett, and I had met up several days ago for a hunt.

_Hey, I think I caught the scent of one of them_ , Jake suddenly interrupted.

_Where?_ Sam asked.

_Near the school,_ Jake answered.

_I'm on my way,_ Sam said. _Paul?_

_Yes, I'll meet you there. I'm about three miles to the south._

It didn't take long for all three of them to meet. When I saw in their minds what they looked like, I froze. Three giant wolves, as big as horses, stood in the forest near the parking lot of Forks High. Not werewolves, I decided since tonight wasn't a full moon. That left only one option, and it wasn't a good one. They were shape-shifters. _I have to talk to Carlisle._

I ran to the house as fast as my legs could carry me. All three of them knew who Bella was, knew her well enough for her to visit them. _This girl is a danger magnet!_

w.W.w

"Carlisle!" I called as soon as I passed the front door.

"What is it, Edward?" Carlisle appeared in front of me within less than a second. "What is wrong?"

"Wolves. Giant, horse-sized, wolves."

Jasper, Alice, Esme, and Emmett joined us in the living room, all wearing worried expressions.

Carlisle froze in shock. "I thought the line died out," he murmured as if speaking to himself.

"Wait, you knew about them?" I demanded.

"Yes." Carlisle nodded. "I have lived in an area not too far from here about seventy years ago. One day I came across a giant wolf. He was a member of the Quileute tribe. I made a treaty with their elders: as long as I stayed away from their lands and never harm a human, they would keep my secret and let me be."

"Why didn't you say anything about it when we first arrived?" I asked.

"I thought the line died out with Ephraim Black," he explained. "I didn't think about it." He looked embarrassed.

"Well, the wolves I saw tonight did not sound friendly at all, and they definitely hated the idea of five new additions to the local vampire population," I said.

"So, are we going to sit here and talk or go and kick some wolf ass?" Emmett asked. He was always eager for a good fight. I could see in his mind that he was already building different scenarios involving the wolves.

"We need to talk to their elders," said Carlisle. "Fighting them is the absolute last thing I want."

Emmett frowned, disappointed. "You're no fun," he mumbled under his breath.

"Do you think they will stop and listen?" Jasper asked, ignoring Emmett's gripes.

"They are still bound by the treaty," Carlisle answered him. "They will listen." His tone was confident, but I could hear the doubt in his thoughts.

"All right, so when do we leave?" Jasper asked.

Alice's mind went blank for a moment and then panic filled her thoughts. "No!" she yelled, and her head snapped to look at Jasper. "Your future just disappeared!" Her expression was one of pure terror for her mate.

I watched the vision in her mind. She saw all of us running through the forest and them everything went black.

"All of us?" I whispered, staring at her in shock.

"All of us?" Carlisle repeated, looking first at Alice and then at me.

"Everything just went black," I explained, seeing that Alice was beyond words at the moment. She was replaying the vision in her mind, over and over again. "Alice can't see anything past the point where we run in the forest on our way to meet them; her vision goes black after that."

"What does it mean?" Emmett asked.

Alice looked up to Jasper and whispered, "There is no me without you."

"I know that, darlin'." He held his hand over her cheek and looked into her eyes.

The moment was so private that I felt intrusive just for being in the same room with them.

"That means that she saw all of us die," I explained, looking away from the couple.

"No!" Esme yelled, her eyes widening with terror.

I saw that her thoughts revolved around each member of what she now thought of as her family. Her eyes finally set on Carlisle, and I saw them sharing a glance that was every bit as intimate as Alice and Jasper's had been. _I can't lose him_ , she thought. I saw the thoughts mirrored in Carlisle's mind; he was also calling us his family and thinking that he could not bear to lose Esme.

I realized at that moment that I saw them as my family as well. I did not want to see any one of them die or hurt.

_Will the wolves really kill us? Are they strong enough?_ Esme wondered.

"They are strong enough to take on a vampire," I told her.

"You've met their kind before?" Carlisle asked, perplexed. _That knowledge isn't common amongst our kind._

"I haven't. I had the misfortune of seeing _real_ werewolves," I answered.

" _Real_ werewolves?" Emmett asked.

"These are shape-shifters, not werewolves. They can morph into a wolf regardless of the phase of the moon," I explained. "I have never met their kind before. I have only heard rumors that their existence was possible, but none of them came from reliable sources."

_Of course!_ Carlisle exclaimed in his thoughts. _I should have thought about it before! The first time I met them was during daytime!_

"I assume that they are just as strong as werewolves, maybe even stronger. Their size was about the same, though."

"How big?" Emmett was excited.

_There is nothing like the prospect of a worthy opponent to cheer him up._ Carlisle thought in amusement.

"Horse size," I answered.

I searched my mind to the rumors I had heard about shape-shifters and werewolves while I was with the Volturi. Caius made it his mission to drive werewolves to extinction and he was quite successful. It was long before my time, but when new rumors surfaced, Caius was beyond terrified.

_There was something he said that day...something about the werewolves being too unpredictable..._

An idea stuck me.

"Alice," I called her.

"Yes, Edward?"

"Earlier tonight, did you see me coming back to the house?"

I saw her go through her memories, and I caught more details about her and Jasper's personal life than I would have liked to.

"What are you thinking, Edward?" Carlisle asked.

Alice shook her head in reply to my question, a tentative hope began to blossom in her thoughts. "I only saw you when you were very close to the house. There was a blank spot for several minutes before that." There was a smile on her lips by the end of her words.

"I have a theory about the wolves," I said, answering Carlisle. Everyone stared at me with anticipation. Alice's smile widened, and the blossom of hope in her mind had turned in to the real thing.

_Of course, the little pixie would have seen my answer as soon as I came up with it myself,_ I thought. "Carlisle, what is the name of the contact you have with the Quileute?"

"Billy Black."

"Alice, can you try to look for his future?"

"I can't see anything," she replied with a beaming smile.

_She can't see the wolves!_ Carlisle thought.

I nodded.

I saw that he was already contemplating the repercussions of this newfound information, his mind too busy for him to speak aloud, so I spoke instead. "Alice can't see the future of the wolves, and therefore, anyone whose path intertwines with theirs also disappears from her visions."

"Why is that?" Esme asked.

Carlisle was the one to answer her. "I think it has something to do with the unstable state of the wolves. Their morphing ability causes their future to change every time they morph, and since they can do that both willingly and unwillingly, their future is unstable."

"How do they morph unwillingly?" Esme asked.

"Their morphing is tied to their emotions," Carlisle explained. "From what I was able to study about them, either rage or fear can be the trigger."

"Keep them calm does the charm?" Emmett asked.

"That pretty much sums it up." Carlisle chuckled. _Leave it to Emmett to take a complex idea and put it in simple words_ , he thought.

"We will need a plan if we want to meet with them," Jasper said. He paused and then added, "And several back up plans, seeing as Alice can't see the outcome of this meeting."

"I agree, Jasper," Carlisle said. "I will call Billy Black and set up a meeting in an hour. That will give us enough time to strategize."

Jasper nodded in agreement.

Carlisle stepped to the porch to make the call. There wasn't really a point, since we could all hear the conversation perfectly well, but it was the polite thing to do, and Carlisle was nothing if not polite. The rest of us began planning the meeting.

w.W.w

We made our way to the treaty line. It was the most reasonable place to meet. The wolves wanted us as far away from their lands as possible, but they didn't want to be too close to our territory. We were early, but I could already hear the pack on their way. Sam was in his human form with Billy black, and they were escorted by three wolves, Paul and Jake, whom I'd heard earlier tonight, and another member of the pack, Jared.

The wolves were fascinating creatures. I could hear not only each and every member of the pack but also something I decided to call 'the pack mind'. It was like a collective memory they all shared. The only time I saw anything alike was when Aro was "reading" someone. The pack could hear everything each of their members thought. They could almost see through the other's eyes. _One hell of an efficient way to communicate._

I explained it to Carlisle as we stood and waited for them to come closer. I knew it would be fascinating to him. In his long years on the face of this earth, he had learned so much about the vampiric nature that there was rarely something new for him to study. He was a scholar and a man of science, as well as a leader.

I hated comparing Carlisle to Aro, but I couldn't help myself. Both of them were fascinated with studying our kind, but while Aro's enthusiasm was childlike, Carlisle was a man of science. When Carlisle's interest was piqued, his eyes sparkled and his mind swirled with thoughts and speculations, but there was nothing juvenile about it. Aro was like the circus ringleader; everyone had to dance to his tune. Carlisle was a quiet leader who cared about his family more than his personal gratification. I think that only after meeting Carlisle, I truly saw how sadistic and perverted Aro's leadership was.

When the pack came from between the trees Sam was still in his human form and the other three remained on four legs. Jared was curious about us, Jake was apprehensive, and Paul was filled with fury. He hated the peaceful approach the elders chose to take with us. In his mind, the best way to deal with a vampire was to tear its limbs and burn the pieces.

"Their legends mention talented vampires, but they consider it a myth." I finished my explanation to Carlisle just as the wolves and humans came into hearing range.

He nodded without answering.

We stood in a line, Carlisle in the middle, Esme, Alice and Jasper to his left, Emmett and I to his right.

Carlisle stepped forward to greet the men. "Mr. Black, thank you for meeting us."

_Like we had any choice,_ Paul snarled. Jake—who was the wolf with the red-brown fur—glared at him and told him to shut it.

"My name is Sam Uley; I am the chief of the tribe." Sam stepped forward, standing just slightly ahead of Billy Black's wheelchair.

"Nice to meet you, Sam," Carlisle said. "This is Alice and Jasper," he gestured at the couple, "Esme, Edward, and Emmett." He continued to gesture at each one of us.

_I don't care what their names are. I want them dead,_ Paul thought.

_They're already dead, you idiot,_ Jared told him

_You know what I mean._

_Shut it,_ Jake commanded and the two stopped their bickering.

"They are old friends of mine that I haven't spoken to in a very long time," Carlisle continued with the introduction. "I came across them a few weeks ago, and they will be staying with me for a while. They are aware of the terms of out treaty and will abide by it," he added before they could ask.

_We'll make sure they do,_ Jake thought.

I could hear the doubt in Billy's mind as well as Sam's, so I decided to speak. "As you can see, all of us share the same eye color." I paused, making sure that their thoughts registered the golden hue of our eyes. Billy was the only one who couldn't see it, but I didn't think that they would appreciate if we came close enough for him to see. "The golden color of our eyes is what sets us apart from others of our kind. Vampires who feed on human blood have red irises. If any one of us were to consume even a few drops of human blood you would see the change in our eye color." I was stretching the truth a little since it would take more than a few drops, but they did not need to know that. "It would take at least a month for the color to change back to gold."

_Good job, Edward,_ Carlisle said in his mind.

Billy looked up at Sam who was watching us very carefully. I knew from both his mind and his actions that he was looking to see if there was any trace of red in our eyes. He looked at each one of us for several seconds before nodding very slightly to Billy. The wolves were doing the same. Jared was pleased to note that there wasn't any red, Jake was still on the cautious side, and Paul was thinking that it changed nothing since we could always kill a human without feeding off of him.

_But what would be the point of that?_ Jared asked him. _Why would they bother killing someone if it wasn't for their blood?_

_How should I know?_ Paul threw back. _I'm not a leech. I don't know how they think._

_No, you're just gay,_ Jared teased.

_No, I'm not._ Paul barked.

Sam shot a glance at him. He might not have been able to hear their thoughts in his human form, but he was not happy with the bark.

_Sorry._ Paul tucked his tail and lowered his head.

_Like a scorned puppy,_ I heard Emmett think as he watched the exchange between Sam and the wolf. I hid a smile. The analogy was pretty accurate.

"All right, as long as all of you are aware of the treaty and remain on your land, we will not bother you," Sam said.

_What? He's just going to let them go?_ Paul thought in anger and barely stifled a howl.

Sam shot him another glare.

_I think that pup is in trouble._ Emmett's thoughts were smug.

"But we will be watching you very carefully," Sam added. He gave each of us another meaningful glare.

_Bring it on, mutt._ Emmett was all too eager.

Alice was annoyed, but it seemed that her lack of vision was the cause of it, rather than Sam's words.

Esme's thoughts were filled with relief.

Jasper was still on edge. He didn't trust the wolves too much, and he was worried about Alice. There was so much hostility in the air that he didn't allow himself to relax.

"You have the right to," Carlisle answered.

_You bet your ass he we do. Dr. Leech._ Paul hissed.

_Paul, damn it, shut up! You and your mouth were enough trouble as it is for one day!_ This time it was Jared who scorned him, but I saw Sam giving him another glare.

It took all of my control to keep my posture relaxed. I was very close to tearing the throat of that _dog._ I was surprised to feel so much protectiveness over Carlisle. Having someone disrespect him was almost too much. Carlisle deserved praise not insults.

I heard my feelings register in Jasper's mind and his approval before a wave of calmness washed over me. I gave him a small nod of gratitude. Even though he agreed with my observation, starting a fight would not have been a smart thing to do.

"Is there anything else you would like to discuss?" I asked.

"No," Sam answered.

No one moved. The wolves did not want to turn their backs on us.

_This is ridiculous!_ I thought. "They are waiting for us to leave," I said to Carlisle in a hushed and quick whisper.

The wolves heard me speak, but they did not catch my words.

_What did that bloodsucker say?_ Paul wondered.

_I don't know, didn't catch it,_ Jared answered.

_Once they leave, I'm going to take a short run around the treaty line,_ Jake thought. _I want to make sure they didn't cross it._

_Want some company?_ Paul asked.

_No. I'm fine. You and Jared should escort Billy and Sam back to the reservation._

"Have a good night," Carlisle said to Sam and then turned back to head back to the house.

We remained quiet for several minutes while we ran back to the house. I was monitoring the wolves' thoughts as we ran. Paul and Jared were with Sam and Billy, Jake was running patrol. We were almost back to the house when I suddenly recognized the path on which Jake was running. It was a path I took every night for the past three weeks.

* * *

**You didn't really think that Bella was going to just take Paul's word for it, did you?**

**As always, thank you for reading. Please take a moment and leave a review.**

**Alley Cat.**


	15. Enemies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Edward**

I stopped mid-run as soon as I realized where that mutt was heading. _This isn't good._

I saw Alice's vision of my future go black and said, "I'm going to Bella's." The family stared at me puzzled, and I saw that Emmett was about to tease me. "One of the wolves caught my scent near her house. I'm going to go and talk to him." I tried to delay as little as possible, knowing that with each passing second the wolf was getting closer to Bella. _This has the potential to break the treaty._

"Do you want us to come with you?" Carlisle asked.

"No. It will be best if I go alone; otherwise, he will consider it as an excuse to start a war."

"Alright, good luck." _Be safe._

"Thank you, Carlisle," I said and burst into a run.

I was outside of Bella's home within seconds, beating the dog to it by taking a different route than his. I stood next to the tree under her window and waited for him.

_Wait, I know where this path leads._ I heard the anger rise in Jake's thoughts. He sped up his pace from a patrolling walk to a full-blown run. _The trail is fresh. What would a bloodsucker want with Bella? Which one is it?_

I could hear the sound of his paws on the forest ground growing closer.

_Why am I even questioning it? The answer is obvious! He's after her blood! Damn, the scent is growing stronger. Is he there right now?_

His thoughts screamed Bella's name and turned incoherent with rage. Hearing this, I found myself regretting that I didn't ask Jasper to come with me, after all; he could have calmed the mutt down long enough for him to listen.

_The last thing we need is witnesses,_ I decided and moved from my current position to the forest across the street from Bella's house. Jake would attack as soon as he saw me, I was certain of it. I knew that I would be able to dodge his strike, but things might get loud enough to wake Bella, her father, and probably half the neighborhood.

I saw him at the same time as his thoughts registered my location. Just as I predicted, he charged instantly. I dodged his jump and used his momentum against him, throwing him behind me.

"I'm not here to hurt anyone," I shouted.

_Why do I find that hard to believe?_ he asked himself sarcastically. He recovered quickly and made another attempt at my throat, but just like before, I dodged and threw him back, using his own momentum against him.

He crashed into a tree and it fell to the forest ground.

"Jake, stop it!" I called. "You'll end up waking up the entire neighborhood. I'm not here to hurt Bella!"

He hesitated for a fraction of a second. _How does he know my name?_

"I'm here to protect Bella, not hurt her," I said, wishing once again for Jasper's presence. I noticed Jake making a similar wish for his pack, realizing that I was not as easy to catch as he thought I would be.

He bared his teeth and growled at me as another one of his attacks failed.

"Jake, I've done nothing to break the treaty. Your attack is uncalled for." If not for the treaty, I would have had his head by now instead of playing catch.

I saw hesitation in his thoughts again. He was wondering how was it that I knew his name and if he could believe me that I wasn't there to hurt Bella.

"I am here to _protect_ her, not hurt her," I told him.

I swear I could see him cock a brow at me. _Do you honestly expect me to believe that?_

"Yes, I do expect you to believe that," I said curtly. His cocky attitude was getting on my nerves.

_Holy...can you hear me?_

"Yes."

_You're a mind reader?_

"Yes."

_Crazy..._

"Not really. I think your tribe's myths mention something about talented vampires, do they not?"

_Yes, they do. How did you know that?_

I put a finger next to my temple. "Mind reader, remember?"

_Yeah._ He frowned. _I still don't like you stalking Bella._

"Neither do I, but that was the best way I could think of to desensitize myself to her scent."

_Is it really that bad? I thought all people smelled the same to you bloodsuckers._

"It is, _mutt._ " _What am I, twelve? Do I really need to stoop down to name-calling?_ I scoffed at myself. "Imagine smelling the most delicious exotic fruit you can think of and then multiply that by a thousand, it still won't smell half as good as Bella's blood smells to me."

_So, are you going to stay here all night?_

I could see that he was planning to stay as well if my answer was affirmative.

"No, actually, I wasn't planning on staying all night. I came back here because I saw that you were headed this way and knew how it would seem to you if I wasn't here to explain."

He frowned again. I had a point there, but he didn't want to admit it.

"I will be here quite often, so the next time you smell me around her house, keep your pants on."

He scoffed at me. That sound in his wolf form sounded oddly human. _Fine._

"Good. I'm glad we got that sorted out."

_I'm...I'm sorry I attacked you_ , he said. _If they consider this as a treaty violation, I would be in heaps of trouble, add the whole Paul situation earlier,_ _and Sam's definitely going to bite my head off._

I had to hide a grin at that. It was killing him to apologize.

"Apology accepted."

This was a little too mellow for my taste, and I felt my inner demon roar, demanding a fierce fight to the death rather than this pathetic peaceful shit. The only things that kept me in check were my respect for Carlisle and what was left of my rational thinking. Breaking the treaty now wouldn't do us any good, and Bella would probably not appreciate it if I killed one of her friends.

w.W.w

The next day in school was odd. We arrived only several minutes before class started, just like the day before, but Bella's truck was nowhere to be seen. _She's probably just running late_ , I said to myself, but I could not help but worry. Was she all right? Did something happen during the night that I wasn't aware of?

"Alice, can you look into Bella's future?" I finally asked.

Alice nodded, and I watched the vision in her mind, showing Bella arriving at school at the same time as I picked out the sound of her truck's noisy engine approaching from the street.

"Thank you, Alice." I smiled at her, immediately relaxing.

I went to the building where the English classroom was and all the while kept my ears perked for the sound of Bella's truck as she parked in the parking lot. I followed her image in the minds of students as I sat down next to our table in class and kept my eyes on the entrance.

Bella came in moments later and made her way to her seat. She didn't look up at me.

"Good morning, Bella," I greeted her with a smile, hoping that she would look at me.

"Morning," she murmured under her breath, and I got the sense that something wasn't quite right.

She refused to look at me, and the veil of mahogany hair kept her face hidden from me. She seemed to be looking forward at the teacher, but her shoulders were slouched. Something was troubling Bella.

The same behavior repeated itself in the next class and the one after that. I caught glimpses of her face in the minds of others and in the hallways. She looked tired. No, it was more than that; she seemed...exhausted. It was more than just a restless night. She looked as though she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.

I searched in the minds of the teachers and students, but no one seemed to notice anything different about Bella. I was anxious for lunchtime to arrive; I knew that Angela would sit next to Bella at their table. Angela's mind was always kind, and she truly cared about Bella. If anyone could shed some light on Bella's mood, it would be Angela.

I got to the cafeteria long before my 'siblings' made it there. I grabbed a tray with some food—I didn't really pay any attention to what I was putting on my tray since it wasn't as if I was actually going to eat any of it—and made my way to our table.

Alice and Jasper walked in next, followed by Emmett a few minutes later. They picked up trays as well—Alice and Jasper pretended to share theirs—and came to sit next to me.

_What got you so worked up, Edward?_ Jasper asked me in his thoughts. He registered my worry and anxiety but didn't want to alert the others yet.

"I don't know yet, Jasper," I answered.

"God, this smells terrible. I can't believe anyone would eat this willingly." Emmett's voice was layered with disgust.

I had to agree with him; whatever was on his tray smelled like rotting meat. I glanced to see what it was and saw a brown lump of something unidentifiable.

"I agree," I said. "That does smell terrible. What is it supposed to be?"

"I don't know, didn't ask." Emmett shrugged.

Part of my mind was still searching for Bella among the thoughts of the students. I looked for her friends. Angela was headed to the cafeteria, but she was thinking about homework. Jessica was thinking about Mike—no surprise there; it was rare to hear her thinking about anything other than him—and Mike was walking next to her. He was thinking about Bella, but the images his mind conjured were lustful and made me want to growl.

"Edward? What's with the growling, man?" Emmett asked, chuckling.

So, okay, maybe the images _did_ make me growl.

"Nothing. Sorry."

Bella never came to the cafeteria. I was getting really worried until I noticed that she was in the library. From what I could see in the mind of the librarian, Mr. Giles, she seemed fine.

I took the apple from Alice and Jasper's tray and went to empty my own. Jasper and Emmett looked at me curiously, but Alice just smiled. The little devil had already seen what I was going to do. Her vision didn't show Bella's response, though, but I hoped she wouldn't mind me looking after her.

Bella was already sitting at our table in Biology when I came in. I placed the apple in front of her as I sat down in the seat next to hers. This time she finally looked at me. Something was definitely troubling her. She had dark shadows under her eyes, eyes that were bloodshot red as if she spent hours crying, and she was biting her lip so hard I was afraid she would draw blood.

"You didn't eat lunch," I said as a way of explanation.

"Thank you." She smiled. It wasn't a wide smile, just a tug on the corner of her mouth, but it reached her eyes and the brown pools of chocolate shined for a moment.

"You're welcome, Bella." I returned the smile, happy that I was able to make her feel better.

She took the apple and put it in the pocket of her sweatshirt. "I'll eat it later."

"Good."

We looked at each other for several long moments before she turned her face back to the front of the class and the lesson started. My attention was on her throughout the lesson. Her shoulders were still slouched slightly, but she was no longer hiding behind her hair. I took it as a good sign.

"Can I walk you to your next class?" I asked as soon as the bell rang.

She looked at me, and I could see the surprise in her face; her brows were slightly raised, and her lips parted. She looked so tempting in that instant, and for the first time, her blood held no appeal to me. Her lips on the other hand...plump, swollen from her biting them, moist, and parted. I wanted to kiss her right then and there. I wanted to know if her lips were as soft as they seemed, if her taste was sweet or spicy. I wanted to know the warmth of her breath in my mouth. I felt myself begin to lean towards her, and I stopped that train of thought before I moved. Now was not the time.

"Why?"

"I want to make sure you eat that apple," I teased.

She blushed and looked away from me. I didn't expect her to do that. Did I offend her?

"Is everything okay? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." What was it about this girl that turned me into a mumbling teenager?

"You didn't offend me, not at all," she assured me quickly, and I could see—and smell—her cheeks grow warmer. She didn't look at me as we walked down the hall and in the direction of our next class—gym.

"Then what is it?"

"I'm just not used to it." She tried to be nonchalant and shrugged.

"Not used to people caring about you?" I frowned.

She nodded.

I could see that she was embarrassed and decided not to push the subject. I knew that she was the quiet type and that she was the one who was taking care of her father, but now I began wondering about her mother or her boyfriend. She didn't have one now, as far as the school and her father knew, but she must have had them in the past, right?

"I'll see you in class, Bella. Thank you for letting me walk with you." I gave her another smile, and that beautiful pink color spread over her cheeks once again.

"See you, Edward," she murmured and walked inside the locker room.

Hearing my name coming from her lips gave me a weird sensation of déjà vu. It was as if I had heard it hundreds of times before. I didn't care. I liked to hear her say my name, and I was certain that I would get to hear it again. _Maybe under more pleasurable circumstances..._

Jasper chuckled at me. _Edward? Is there something you want to tell me?_

I looked at him questioningly.

He projected me back my emotions, and a wave of lust hit me so strong that I felt my body react instantly. _In a boys' locker room, no less._ Jasper smirked at me.

I laughed. "I was thinking about Bella, actually."

_I'm sure you were._ Jasper smiled playfully and wiggled his eyebrow.

"Channeling your inner Emmett?"

He burst out laughing. "Maybe." He winked.

w.W.w

Gym was proving to be the most boring class of all. Moving at a human pace was agonizingly slow and boring. I saw that both Jasper and Emmett were on the same page. My only comfort was that I was able to watch Bella during this class, and boy did she need watching. It took everything I had not to launch toward her every time she tripped and fell, which she did no less than six times during the meager forty-five minutes of the lesson.

_I know humans are clumsy, but that has to be the worst of the species!_ Emmett's eyes were sparkling with laughter.

I glared at him.

Bella was already blushing fiercely, and I didn't need Jasper's ability to know that she was thoroughly embarrassed as it was; she didn't need Emmett laughing at her as well.

I was never more grateful than I was when the bell finally rang to signal the end of the lesson. I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose, taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly. I welcomed the burn of Bella's scent today; it felt reassuring to me, like nothing else could, that she was alive and well.

Most of the students had left the gym by the time I heard the snide tone of a girl thinking about Bella. I growled under my breath. Lauren was filled with so much hate and jealousy that it was disgusting, but it wasn't just the feel of her thoughts that made me freeze; it was the plan forming in her mind.

Bella tripped over her laces and bent down to tie them. When she stood up and turned to make her way to the exit, Lauren made her move. She stuck her foot in front of Bella to trip her, and her hands pushed Bella to the metal railing at the edge of the bleachers.

I saw panic fill Bella's beautiful eyes as she realized that she was about to hit the railing with her head, and my body moved. It was pure instinct on my part.

_No!_

My mind was screaming as my feet carried me across the gym. My arms caught Bella's body at the last possible second before she hit her head. The shock of her warm body pressed against my chest made my breath hitch. _It feels so good, to have her in my arms. Safe._

I glared at Lauren. Her expression changed from a furious disappointment to that of fear. I knew that the sight of my eyes, dark with rage, registered in her mind. I could smell the fear oozing out of every pore in her skin, and I smiled—it was a teeth-baring, evil smirk that was every bit of a threat as that of my glare—before looking down at Bella.

"Are you all right?" I asked her.

Bella looked up at me, and the chocolate pools in her eyes widened as her mind registered my presence. She parted her lips to speak, but no sound came out, and I was beginning to worry. _Maybe she did hurt her head, after all?_

Eventually, she gave up on speaking and simply nodded.

"Do you think you can stand up?"

She nodded again, her eyes still locked on mine, but she made no move to stand up. I heard that her heart was still racing, and my worry deepened. Was she afraid of me? I felt a huge sense of sorrow hit me. The last thing I wanted was for Bella to be afraid of me. I gave her a gentle smile, careful not to show any of the razor-sharp teeth behind my lips. Her cheeks colored immediately, and the sweet scent of her blood flooded my nose. Her eyes darted away from mine, and she began to stand up.

"Ouch," she hissed under her breath as soon as she tried to place her weight on her legs.

"What's wrong?" I asked, my eyes assessing her body top to bottom. I already knew she wasn't bleeding, but maybe she had internal injuries. Some part of my brain knew that I was overacting, but another part, the more primal part of me, was dominating my emotions at the moment.

The color in her cheeks deepened. "I think I sprained my ankle." She was still looking away from me.

Without hesitation, I picked her up in my arms and went to carry her out of the gym.

"What are you doing?" Bella looked up at me, her eyes widening once again. Her heart rate was still too fast for my liking.

"Well, you clearly can't walk on a sprained ankle," I smiled at her again, "so I'm taking you to the school nurse."

"There is really no need for that," she tried to insist.

I looked at her eyes as I carried her out of the gym and tried to read the emotions in them. From what I could discern, she was embarrassed, tired, and in pain.

"I just need to get home. I can take care of it myself. It's really not that big of a deal."

_I will pick Bella's stuff from the locker room, Edward._ Alice's thoughts came from inside the girls' locker room. _Take her to our place and get Carlisle to bandage her ankle. He will be home by the time you get there. I will take her truck back to her house._

"Well, if you don't want to go to the nurse's office, I can take you to see Carlisle," I offered Bella. "He is a doctor and will be able to take care of you at our place."

She seemed to think about it for a few moments. "I don't want to trouble anyone..."

"Don't worry about that; he will be glad to help. Unless you prefer to go to the hospital...?"

"No!" she said quickly. "There's no need for hospitals. But I can't leave my truck here—"

"Alice, my sister, can drive your truck back to your house. We took two cars today," I quickly explained before Bella could come up with another reason to protest. "Emmett will follow her and take her home."

As approached my car, a black Audi R8, I slowed down and gently lowered Bella to stand on her left foot

I opened the passenger door for her, holding her hand to keep her balanced, and slowly lowered her into the leather seat. I didn't know what she would think about the temperature of my hand, but I hoped that she would attribute it to the cold weather.

"Besides, you clearly can't drive with one leg, so stop worrying, okay?" I tilted my head a little and gave her another smile, this time a little wider.

I heard her breath hitch and her heartbeat quicken before she bit her lip nervously and nodded.

"Good."

I made my way to the driver side of the car in a human pace and opened the door.

_There's just one thing I didn't take into account,_ I thought as I closed the door. _Having Bella in such a small closed space will be a great test for my self-control_.

I took a tentative breath through my mouth and tested myself. The air in the car was not saturated with her scent yet, but it would definitely be a challenge. _You were never one to run away from a challenge, Edward, don't start now._ I thought to myself.

"Edward?" Bella's voice pulled me away from my thoughts.

"Yes?" I turned to look at her while starting up the car and the heating. I might not mind the temperature inside the car, but I could see the small shivers that ran down Bella's body.

She looked at me, biting her lip. "How will Alice drive my truck? The keys are in my pocket."

_Now is not the time to be imagining those lips biting different parts on my body_ , I thought while trying to drive away those exact images.

There was a knock on her window at the moment Bella ended her sentence. I lowered Bella's window, and Alice outstretched her hand to take the key from Bella.

"Bella, this is Alice, my sister. Alice, this is Bella," I introduced them. "I would think that answers your question?"

"I guess so," she said with a small laugh. It was a wonderful sound, and the light that shined in her eyes as she laughed made her more beautiful than I would have thought possible.

_You've got it hard, Edward._ Jasper's thoughts were almost smug as he registered my appreciation and adoration toward the human girl sitting next to me.

"Shut up, Jasper," I murmured under my breath, too low for Bella to hear, and was rewarded with some more smugness.

Bella handed Alice the keys to her truck, and Alice handed Bella her school bag.

"Your clothes from the locker room are inside," Alice added.

"Thank you Alice." Bella smiled at her.

"You're welcome," Alice chimed and danced her way to Bella's truck.

"See you at home, Alice," I called after her and she gave me a small wave without turning around. "Ready to go?" I asked Bella.

She nodded, and I pushed the gas and drove away from the school parking lot. _This is definitely not the way I had imagined bringing Bella to my house for the first time_ , I thought with a smile, _but I will take what I can get._

* * *

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	16. Apple

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I barely slept that night. I was able to fall asleep pretty quickly, but the nightmares began just as fast. I dreamt about the car accident from last year and about those terrible days after my mother's accident. The first time I woke up that night was right after finding Phil in the living room. Only in my dream the pale body of my step-father did not stay on the couch; the moment I called his name—just like I did on that terrible night—Phil opened his eyes and looked at me, his irises shining bright red, and I screamed.

I was sweating and panting, every sound and every movement of the shadows in my room scared me, but I was tired and my eyelids dropped. I turned on the lamp on my nightstand and fell asleep with it on, hoping in vain that the light would chase away the nightmares.

It didn't.

The second time I woke up, I knew I had been screaming. Charlie didn't come in to check on me so he either didn't hear me or was sleeping very soundly, but my throat was so sore from shouting that I knew it would be hoarse the next day. I didn't even know I was crying until a wet tear fell from my cheek onto my hand. The nightmare was even worse than the one before it. I was sitting in a sunny meadow. It was chilly but I didn't mind it. I wasn't alone in that meadow; there was someone sitting next to me. I was holding his hand, yet it wasn't as warm as one would have expected it to be. I looked up to see his face and couldn't find it. There were only wildflowers and sunshine around me. When he suddenly disappeared, I jumped to my feet, tripping—because even in my dreams I was clumsy—and began searching for him. The sunny meadow was instantly transformed into a dark forest, and there were no more flowers, no more warmth. I was completely alone.

 _You have Charlie,_ I reminded myself. _You are not alone._ I tried to convince myself of that, but the pain from my dream was too real. Something was telling me that there should have been someone else, someone who would love me in a different way than the way my father does. It was the same feeling as the one I had last night when I thought about the mysterious someone who should have been there to save me from the car accident.

I was asleep again before I knew it.

I was moving so fast in the forest that I thought I must have been flying, but instead of the wonderful feeling of freedom that should accompany flying, there was fear and pain. The next thing I knew, I found myself back at home, with Charlie. I heard the words coming out of my mouth and saw the pain in Charlie's eyes.

" _It didn't work out, okay? I really, really hate Forks_." What was I saying? Why was I hurting Charlie so much?

He stood frozen on the doorstep, stunned, while I ran into the night.

My vision blurred as I ran. I got into my red truck and began driving away. I wanted to run back. I wanted to go and hold my dad tightly and say that I was sorry, that I didn't mean the things I said, but the dream-me kept driving. There was a loud thump, and the door of the truck was suddenly open.

My heart jumped to my throat, and my eyes flew open. My pulse was racing in fear and my vision blurred by tears.

 _I will never do that,_ I vowed. _I will never say those things to Charlie_.

There was light coming in through my window, and I knew there was no point in trying to go back to sleep. I'd had enough nightmares for one night. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was still early but knew that Charlie would have left the house by now.

I pushed the blanket away and made my way to the bathroom for my morning routine. I was tired, my throat was sore, and I was cold. I decided to take a hot shower; I had enough time before I had to leave for school, and I really needed to warm up. However, even as I stood under the scorching hot water of the shower, I felt cold. Eventually, when the water began to cool down, I stepped out. The bathroom mirror was clouded with steam, so I couldn't see my reflection. I knew that I probably looked terrible, and I preferred not to confirm it with my eyes.

I ate slowly, barely tasting the food, and I drove even slower than usual. I didn't want to be early today. I didn't want to have to put up with people asking questions. I knew that it was stupid to be so upset over nightmares, childish even, but I couldn't help myself. I drove into the parking lot with only minutes left until my first class started. The parking lot was mostly empty; only the new kids were still there, and they were also leaving to go to class. I didn't even look at them as I parked my truck and made my way to class.

I was so tired that I couldn't pay attention in class. The teachers seemed to understand and didn't call me out. I knew I would have to ask Angela and Jessica, and maybe even Mike, for notes; I couldn't remember anything the teachers had said once the lessons were over. I heard Edward try to speak to me during the morning classes, and I was able to murmur something polite in reply but didn't look at him. I didn't look at anyone.

When it was time for lunch, I knew that I couldn't handle my friends, not in my current state of mind. Angela wouldn't push it, even though I knew she was worried about me. Jessica was a different story, though. I also knew that Lauren would probably sit with us again, and she was definitely the last person I wanted to see, so I skipped lunch and went to the library instead.

I wasn't able to do much reading. No matter how hard I tried to focus on my textbooks, my thoughts went back to my nightmares. The loneliness that I had felt during the night was magnified by the fatigue, and I didn't even see the text in front of me. Eventually, I gave up and just sat there, staring at one of the pages and trying to gather my thoughts.

 _I'm not alone; I have Charlie,_ I reminded myself again and again, but the hole in my chest seemed to grow wider with every passing second. _It's not Charlie's love that I'm missing,_ I thought. The sadness was threatening to drown me.

I left the library before lunch was over and was the first one to get into my Biology classroom. I sat next to my table and arranged my books. I doubted whether I would actually be able to write anything down, not with the tears constantly filling my eyes and the lump in my throat, but I had to make an appearance.

I ignored the curious looks that I got from everyone who came in. _Maybe I should have come in last rather than first._

Suddenly, an apple appeared in front of me. I looked up in surprise and saw Edward Cullen looking at me with concern in his eyes.

"You didn't eat lunch," he said simply.

I gave him a smile. It was small, but it was all that I was capable of at that moment.

"Thank you," I whispered.

It was so low that I wasn't sure he could hear me, but then he smiled and said, "You're welcome, Bella." His eyes were happy.

 _I made him smile like that,_ I thought, and suddenly, I wasn't feeling so bad anymore.

"I'll eat it later." I put the apple in my pocket.

"Good," he said with the same happy sparkle in his eyes, and just like yesterday, I found myself drowning in the golden hue of his eyes, in the happiness that filled them.

I turned my head to the teacher when the lesson started, so I could have a better chance of concentrating.

His simple gesture meant so much to me. He had paid enough attention to notice that I wasn't in the cafeteria for lunch. He cared enough to bring something back for me, even if it was just an apple. Small enough that I wouldn't feel like it was too much, but in my eyes, it felt very big. He _cared._

"Can I walk you to your next class?" he asked as soon as the bell rang.

I turned to look at him. _Did he just ask to walk me to the next class?_ "Why?" I asked before I could stop myself.

"I want to make sure you eat that apple."

I knew he was teasing, but I felt myself blush and had to look away.

"Is everything okay? I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

"You didn't offend me, not at all," I said quickly, embarrassed even more that he thought he had offended me. I felt like a complete idiot. _He didn't ask you to get in bed with him, for Christ sake! He just offered to walk you to your next class, which is also HIS next class._

I kept chastising myself as we walked out of the classroom and toward the gym. Edward was just being nice to me, and I needed to get a grip on my emotions before I did something that would embarrass me even more, such as kiss him. _Whoa! Where did that come from?_

"Then what is it?" He wasn't letting me off the hook that easily.

"I'm just not used to it." I shrugged, trying my best to appear nonchalant. I didn't want him to see how much his simple gesture, which was probably no more than an afterthought on his part, meant to me.

"Not used to people caring about you?" he asked, and even without looking at him, I knew he was frowning.

I couldn't find my tongue at that moment, so I simply nodded. I was praying that he wouldn't press the matter any farther; my face was already as red as a tomato.

Fortunately, he didn't say anything else. We walked in comfortable silence for the rest of the way until we came to the doors to the girls' locker room.

"I'll see you in class, Bella. Thank you for letting me walk with you." He smiled.

I felt myself grow warm again. "See you, Edward," I murmured and quickly walked inside.

I realized that it was the first time that I ever spoke his name out loud, yet there was something very familiar about the sound of his name coming from me. I was deep in thought while I changed and didn't notice that Lauren had come up to me.

"Isabella," she said with an evil grin. She knew that I hated people using my full name and used it on purpose to get a reaction out of me. Well, she wasn't about to get one. "I want to talk to you."

"Talk." I shrugged.

"Stay away from Edward Cullen."

I was so shocked that I thought I felt my jaw hit the floor. I didn't know what shocked me more: the fact that she felt threatened enough by me to actually come and say it or the fact that she had the nerve to tell _me_ what to do. I rolled my eyes at her—I wasn't about to dignify that with an answer—and stepped around her to go to the gym.

I ignored Lauren during gym class. I had enough trouble keeping myself standing as it is; I didn't need distractions. I fell a total of six times, which was actually a new all-time low for me, and while I suspected that at least one of those falls might have had something to do with Lauren, I ignored it.

When class was over, I let the other girls run in front of me; the less people on my way to the locker rooms, the less of a chance there was that I would stumble into one of them.

Just as I was walking towards the exit, I noticed that my laces were untied. _Okay so 'noticed' isn't the right word; 'tripped over' would be more accurate_ , I thought as I bent down to tie them. I had the odd sensation that I was being watched, so I glanced through my hair. Sure enough, I saw Edward Cullen standing on the other side of the gym with his eyes fixed on me. _God, I hope he isn't looking at my butt._ I felt another heat wave wash over my face.

I stood up and continued walking towards the exit. _Oh_ _God, please let this nightmare be over! I just want to go home and sleep for the next twelve-or-so hours._ I wasn't able to make even a single step when suddenly the whole world went from being upright to tilting sideways. My foot stumbled over something, and I was desperately trying to gain my balance back. It was no use. I felt my body begin to fall and remembered the metal railing on the bleachers. I panicked. I was headed for a serious injury: either my head or my neck were on a collision path with a metal rod. I closed my eyes and felt my body slam against something hard, but there was no pain.

"Are you okay?" someone asked me.

I looked up to see Edward Cullen looking down at me with dark eyes.

 _Weren't they golden the last time I saw them?_ It was a stupid thing to think about, I know. I should have been thinking about the fact that he probably just saved my life—I really wasn't enough of an optimist to think I would have survived my neck hitting a metal railing—but I was more occupied with him. Edward was holding me in his arms; I was sitting on the floor and he was kneeling behind me.

Nothing felt broken. My head and my neck were still in place, and I seemed to be in one piece. I tried to open my mouth to say something, but no words came out, so I simply nodded in reply to his question.

 _How did he get to me so fast? He was on the other side of the gym._ There was something vaguely familiar about him holding me like that, saving me at the last minute. _Are you sure you didn't hurt your head, Bella?_

"Do you think you can stand?" he asked.

Words still evaded me, so I just nodded again. I could stand up. My eyes were still locked on his, and I saw that the color of his irises was slowly lightening up and the beautiful golden orbs were back to normal.

 _He has the most beautiful eyes..._ And then he smiled, and I felt my whole body melt. _It should be illegal for him to smile like that!_ I knew I was blushing again. There was just something about him that brought the shyness in me to a whole new level. I looked away from him and tried my best to stand up.

"Ouch," I hissed as a sharp pain shot up my ankle.

"What's wrong?" he asked, anxious.

I could _feel_ his eyes on me as he assessed me from head to toe. I knew that he was probably looking for injuries, but I still felt embarrassed. "I think I sprained my ankle," I said, still looking away from him. The next thing I knew, the world was tilting again. "What are you doing?" I asked, looking up at him only to notice that his face was much closer to me than before.

"Well, you clearly can't walk on a sprained ankle," he smiled, "so I'm taking you to the school nurse."

 _He is carrying me in his arms!_ "There is really no need for that," I tried to protest. It was stupid because there was no way I could make my way home by myself, but I really didn't want to cause him any more trouble. I mean, the guy had already saved my life...I should give him a break! Part of my brain was still preoccupied with the question of just how was it that he was able to get to me so fast, but the other part was thinking that it felt really nice to be in his arms. I heard myself continue to say, "I just need to get home. I can take care of it myself. It's really not that big of a deal." I wanted to kick myself.

"Well, if you don't want to go to the nurse's office, I can take you to see Carlisle," he offered. "He is a doctor and will be able to take care of you at our place."

On one hand, I really wasn't looking forward to seeing Dr. Cullen again, not after making such a fool of myself in front of him the last time I saw him. On the other hand, my ankle hurt like a bitch already. "I don't want to trouble anyone..."

"Don't worry about that. He will be glad to help, unless you prefer to go to the hospital?"

"No!" I said, probably a little too loud, but the last thing I needed was Charlie having to show up to get me from the hospital, _again._ "There's no need for hospitals," I said. However, there was the matter of my truck to take care of. "But I can't leave my truck here—"

"Alice, my sister, can drive your truck back to your house," he quickly cut me off. "We took two cars today. Emmett will follow her and take her home."

He lowered me down next to a beautiful black car, _hey, just because I don't SPEAK Car and Driver, it doesn't mean that I can't appreciate a nice-looking car._ He was so gentle when he moved me, lowering me very slowly into the leather seat of his car, that the pain in my ankle was almost forgotten.

"Besides, you clearly can't drive with one leg, so stop worrying, okay?" He tilted his head as if pleading and gave me another devastating smile. _Definitely criminal, that smile of his_ , I thought as my breath hitched. I bit my lip and nodded.

"Good."

He made his way to the other side of the car, and I shamelessly checked him out through the window. I had never seen anyone who moved so gracefully.

A thought came to me as he sat down next to me.

"Edward?" I called him, enjoying the sound of his name.

"Yes?" He turned to me while leaning down to a button on the dashboard.

"How will Alice drive my truck? The keys are in my pocket," I asked him. I felt warm air blowing at me and realized that he must have turned on the heater. I was engulfed with his scent again, _lilac and sunshine;_ it was the same scent as the one he had yesterday only much more intoxicating because of the small closed spaced we were in. I wanted to drown myself in his scent, and I had to bite my lips so that I wouldn't moan out load. _What is he DOING to me?_

There was a knock on my window as soon as I finished my sentence, and I saw a short girl standing right outside. Her hair was black and spiked out in a very stylish do, her eyes were bright gold, and her small face was surprisingly pale. She was beautiful, and I didn't need his confirmation to know that this was Edward's sister. _I thought they weren't genetically related..._

"Bella, this is Alice, my sister. Alice, this is Bella," he introduced us. "I would think that answers your question?" Edward cocked a brow at me.

"I guess so," I said with a small laugh. I heard him mumble something under his breath, but I didn't catch it.

Alice's hand was outstretched to take the keys from me and she handed me my schoolbag. "Your clothes from the locker room are also inside," she told me before I even had a chance to think about it.

"Thank you, Alice." I smiled at her. It was really nice of her to care this much about someone who she didn't know. How _did_ she know? I ran back in my mind, thinking at the sequence of events. At what point could Edward have told her? He didn't use his cell phone to call her, and I didn't see her outside the gym or in the parking lot. It was as if she _knew_ that he would ask for her help with my truck.

"Ready to go?" Edward asked, pulling me out of my musings.

I nodded. I was so preoccupied with my thoughts that I didn't even notice Alice walking away.

There were so many questions running through my head by now, so many things that simply didn't add up. In the back of my mind, I noticed that we were moving, and if I were to judge by the view from my window, I would have said that Edward was going way above the speed limit, but the majority of my brain way too busy to care.

_Okay, lets suspend common sense for five minutes...Edward was nowhere near me when I tripped today. He would have had to move faster than is humanly possible in order to get to me from the other side of the gym; just like Carlisle had to move faster than I could see that time in the hospital when I was sick._

Slowly, I began to find more and more common aspects in Edward and Carlisle. _Not just with Carlisle, but Alice as well. She is also incredibly beautiful, with golden eyes and pale skin._

I remembered seeing Edward's eyes change color from gold to black and then back to gold in a matter of minutes. The grace in which he and Carlisle moved would have made the world's most famous ballerina cry.

Edward had carried me in his arms as if I weighed no more than his schoolbag. I was always on the skinny side and Edward had distinct muscles in his arms, but I was still a lot heavier than the average schoolbag. It was then that another thing registered in my mind: Edward's body was cold. It couldn't have cooled down from the weather, both because it wasn't cold enough for him to be _this_ cold and because he was already cold when he had picked me up at the gym. Both of us spent the forty-five minutes prior to that being physically active; if anything, his body temperature should have been _higher_ than normal, not lower.

 _Golden eyes, pale skin, cold body temperature, unnatural strength and speed, unimaginable grace and extraordinary beauty. Does that sound familiar to you, Bella?_ I already knew the answer to that. _The only thing that doesn't fit into the Quileute legend of The Cold Ones is the color of their eyes._

Was I really ready to accept that it was a possibility? Was I ready to believe that the world I was living in for the past eighteen or so years included creatures like The Cold Ones?

I was pulled out of my thoughts when the car stopped. We were parked in front of a large house that was surrounded by tall trees. The front wall of the house was replaced with a huge window made of slightly tinted glass. It was a beautiful structure; it was three stories high and it had a wooden porch in the front. I assumed that they had an equally beautiful wooden deck in the back of the house.

It was the first time I had ever seen this house—I was sure of it—and yet...I felt equally certain that I had been in this house before. It must have been more than a hundred years old, but it felt timeless and graceful. _Just like its inhabitants_.

I just knew that the first floor would be spacious and that there would be a small stage to the left of the front door, with a piano—Edward's piano—standing on it. There would be a door to the kitchen behind the stage, and the kitchen would open up to a dining room. I knew that Edward's room would be on the third floor and that there would be a black leather couch and a huge CD collection, but no bed.

I don't know how was it that I knew all those things, but I just... _knew._ That's when another thought flashed in my mind. _Werewolves..._

Was it possible that that part was also true, that _all_ of the Quileute legends were true? Was it possible that mythical creatures existed, and that I was, in fact, a friend of a _werewolf_ and sitting next to a _vampire_ , a vampire that drove me to meet his vampire family, while no one other than his vampire-sister knew where I was headed?

I was going to be either a meal or a pet. I didn't like either.

I should have been terrified. I should have panicked and my life should have flashed before me. This was as much a near-death-experience as my accident last year. However, I was never one to be accused of being normal, and therefore, I did none of those things. Edward was taking me to his house for the first time, I was about to meet his parents, and the only thought that swirled in my mind was—would they approve of me?

_For crying out loud, I just met the guy yesterday! It's not like we're dating! Why am I even thinking about that?_

Edward's next words made my breath freeze in my lungs and my eyes widen with shock.

"So you are worried not because you'll be in a house full of vampires, but because you think they won't approve of you?"

* * *

**Yes, I am** _**that** _ **evil.**

**It was about time that Bella put everything together, don't you think? But how did Edward know? Good question, you'll find out in the next chapter (if you haven't already guessed).**

**I'm sure that at least some of you want to throw something really heavy at me, so use the review button and let me know how feel ^.^**

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	17. The Wish

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Rosalie**

"Way to go, Eddie! I knew I could count on you to fuck _everything_ up!" I shouted at the image before me. I could not _believe_ that my idiot of a brother just let his big, fat, stupid mouth loose like that!

"Rosalie, calm down. It is not as bad as it may seem to you at the moment."

"Not as bad? Not as _bad_?" I knew I was screeching. I knew that I shouldn't do that, too, but I just couldn't hold back. My temper was flaring, and I couldn't stop the words from coming out of my mouth. "That mother-fucking, son-of-a-bitch, good for nothing, lunatic, delusional BLOODSUCKER!" _Bella must be scared out of her wits!_

"Rosalie!"

That stern tone always got to me. It was the same tone that Carlisle had used when he went into 'leader-mode' as Emmett called it. It was very rare that he needed to use it, but when he did, you just couldn't help but listen to him.

As it were, even though I was dead, it still worked on me, even if it wasn't coming from the vampire himself. I stopped the profanities and looked at her. "Sorry."

"Good. Now, give Edward a little credit. He did not spook Isabella."

I continued to watch, and sure enough, Edward was carrying Bella in his arms and there was curiosity written all over her face. There was not even the slightest trace of fear in her features. "I just hope you're right." I huffed. There was so much at stake here.

"I know exactly how much is at stake, Rosalie. I wouldn't have brought you back from the dead if I didn't."

"I know," I murmured quietly. I didn't like to think about it. For all intents and purposes, I was dead. I wasn't even the undead creature that I used to be; I was absolutely and positively dead.

I had died on that terrible night when Royce and his friends decided that they wanted to 'have a little fun' with me.

When Gaia brought me to this place—whatever 'this place' was; I still wasn't sure—she gave me something that I thought I would never have again. Gaia gave me hope, and I wasn't about to return her favor with ungratefulness.

It was hard watching them from this place. It was hard to see my family go about their lives without me and know that this was all _my_ doing. It was even harder going through this while knowing that it was my _selfishness_ that not only killed me but also tore my family apart, without any one of them knowing about it.

My thoughts went back to that fateful meeting in Alaska.

_I hadn't fed in two months. I just couldn't force my body to move away from the bedroom I shared with my husband._

_My Emmett._

_Just thinking his name tore me from the inside. It had been two months since the day we got the phone call that ruined our family. I could still hear the smugness in Aro's voice as he spoke to Carlisle to let him know that four of his coven members were destroyed: Edward, Alice, Jasper, and Emmett._

_Alice, my adopted sister, would never again cross the doorstep and announce that we're going on a shopping trip to Paris. Jasper, the warrior brother, would never again sit with me in complete silence and understand me better than my own twin—should I have had one—could have. Emmett, my bear of a husband, was my rock and my soul in this existence...Emmett was my better half. He made this existence bearable. He would never again share this bedroom with me, kiss me, hold me, make love to me…_

_And then there was Edward. That selfish, self-centered, brooding idiot that I once called my brother. It was all his fault! Everything went wrong from the moment he decided to bring Bella to our home. It was his fault that my sister and brother were taken away from me. It was his fault that my soul mate was taken away from me, and it was his fault that Esme and Carlisle, the parents that I used to turn to for comfort, were barely able to hold themselves together._

_I was beyond furious. I was livid. I destroyed an entire forest within minutes of Aro's phone call._

_Edward brought Bella to our home. Edward decided to force us to leave Forks because of his little human pet. Edward broke Esme's heart in the months following our departure. Edward decided to go to the Volturi as soon as we learned of Bella's death. Alice, my loving sister, could not just let him die. She booked the ticket to Italy as soon as she saw his decision. Jasper went with her because she was his soul mate. Emmett went with them because he wasn't about to let his brother and sister go into the lion's den that was Volterra without him._

_The only reason that I wasn't dead as well was that I had not known anything about what was happening until it was too late to stop any of them from going. I was just a few miles away from the house, getting a head start on a hunting trip that I was supposed to go on with Emmett. I got back after getting a hurried phone call from Emmett that told me that he had to go save his little brother and that Esme and Carlisle were left behind and would fill me in on everything. He had to cut the call short because they were already boarding the plane. It was the last time I had heard his voice; the last time I had spoken with him._

_I wished for death. For two months, I stood in our bedroom and stared at the photo on the bedside table. It was a photo taken at our last wedding. Emmett always looked amazing in his tuxedo, and I was so happy to exchange vows once again and celebrate our love. For eight weeks and twelve hours, I stood still. I could hear Esme and Carlisle going about the house. They tried to talk to me and get me to hunt, but I didn't answer them; I couldn't move my eyes away from the photo._

_My Emmett._

_My heart and soul._

_Taken away from me._

_Because of Edward._

" _Your rage is the most wonderful thing I have witnessed in well over a dozen centuries."_

_I didn't move. In my peripheral vision, I saw that a man was standing next to the nightstand. He was neither a human nor a vampire. His eyes were black and didn't have irises at all. He reminded me of the way humans liked to depict aliens in movies. I did not respond. I did not care who he was._

" _That fury of yours is what drew me to you. I have come to offer you a deal," he continued, unfazed by the lack of a response._

_I still didn't move. I didn't care anymore. My soul had been burned two months ago. There was nothing but darkness left, inside and out._

" _I can make it all go away," he stated calmly. "I can bring back your Emmett and punish those who need to be punished."_

_At the sound of Emmett's name, my eyes shot to meet the eyes of the strange creature._

" _I can give you your human life back as well, if that is what you wish."_

_There was a time when I would have given up everything I had to become human again. Now, as everything_ _**was** _ _taken away from me, I began wondering whether it was worth it after all._

" _All you need to do is make a wish," he said. I was about to open my mouth, but he stopped me. "Think carefully, because whatever you choose, it will be irreversible. Once you speak your wish and it is granted, you will never be able to go back."_

"I still can't believe how selfish I was," I murmured. My eyes were fixed on some point in front of me, but my mind was miles away, in my memories.

"You were grief-stricken," Gaia said, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder. " _He_ took advantage of that."

"I know, but I still feel guilty." And I did. I also felt sorry for myself. I couldn't help it. I was hoping for a normal human life when I made that wish. I had wished for a punishment to the person I saw as responsible for all the wrongs that I had seen in my life, and I was fooled.

"That is why I gave you a chance to make amends," Gaia said calmly.

"And I am grateful that you did," I said truthfully. If it weren't for Gaia, my story would have ended on that fateful April night.

"I know you are." She smiled at me gently.

I knew that Gaia could have done it without me. She didn't have to bring me back from the dead and give me a second chance at life. Okay, so maybe not a second chance at _life_ , per se, but definitely a second chance at _love_. _Speaking of which, I should get back to my mission. The last thing my family needs now is a visit from the Volturi._

"Can we catch up on Aro?" I asked Gaia. Although she said I could always use the mirror myself, I never felt comfortable enough with the damn thing. _I mean, come on! What am I, Snow-white's bitchy stepmother? I'm not_ _ **that**_ _vain_. _Although Edward might disagree with me on that point, just to irritate me…_

Gaia smiled, well aware of my thoughts and the emotions behind them. I didn't really care. After living for so many years under the same roof with an empath and a mind reader, I was pretty much used to the lack of privacy. Besides, unlike Edward and Jasper, Gaia was a woman. _Well, maybe not a woman per se, but a female nonetheless._ She understood things in a way neither one of them ever could.

"Garrick." Gaia turned to the mirror. "Show us Aro of the Volturi," she commanded. Her voice was calm and level.

"Yes, Gaia," the faceless voice answered, and the image that had previously showed Bella being carried inside the Cullen house by Edward now showed one of the three leaders of the vampire world. It so happened that said leader was currently preoccupied with his mate.

My eyes snapped shut immediately, but the image was forever burned in my mind. I cringed.

"Gross." I shuddered, turning my back to the mirror.

Gaia laughed.

"Garrick, show me the last decisions of the Volturi regarding Tony de Volturi," she said to the mirror.

"Yes, Gaia," the voice replied.

_God, I hope there will be no more naked Volturi members in that one…_

"It's safe to turn around, Rosalie," Gaia said with a chuckle.

"Just making sure, can't be too careful, not after seeing _that,_ " I said, shuddering again with disgust. _Although it could be a nice image to torment Edward with..._ I thought with a faint smile. Despite everything, or maybe perhaps _because_ of everything, I still loved my brother very much, and I always enjoyed teasing him.

It took several minutes to watch the flickering images in the mirror. It was like watching a movie in fast-forward, in a foreign language, and with no subtitles. It was mostly in Italian, as far as I could identify. I waited patiently for Gaia to finish watching and fill me in on the details.

We've done that countless times before; Gaia watched the decisions and then summarized and translated them for me. Ever since Edward had left the Volturi, we've been keeping an eye on them.

"This will take a while," Gaia said, her eyes still focused on the flickering images. "There is no need for the two of us to stand here. I will call you once I had watched everything."

"What about Bella and my family?"

"I will let you know how it went. The Volturi are a bigger worry at the moment."

"Okay," I said. "I'll see you later."

"See you later, Rosalie."

w.W.w

**David**

I could still hear her voice in my head. Begging me. If I were capable of sleep, I would have had nightmares every single night. As it were, I saw her every time I closed my eyes. Her beautiful face, oval-shaped and tan from the sun. Her beautiful green eyes that always held her love for me.

My Elena.

It had been more than a century since her death, but I could never forget her. The way her hair, long dark curls, would wave in the blowing wind. The scent of her skin, jasmine and roses. The sound of her voice, a soft murmur that I would never allow myself to forget, even if I were capable of forgetting.

She died by my own hands, but it was _their_ fault. _The Volturi._

History was repeating itself. As soon as I had found a new family, the Volturi were about to tear them away from me yet again. Just like they did with my Elena.

_I knew it was dangerous, going back to her, but there was nothing I could have done to stop myself. I was only three years into this life. I was a demon, but I still loved her. She was my sunshine and my light, so I had to come back to her. As soon as I was able to think around the bloodlust, I made my way back to Tuscany. To the home I had once shared with her, when I was human._

_Elena, bless her soul, welcomed me with open arms. She did not fear the bright crimson of my eyes or the cold, pale skin of my body._

" _I can still see your soul in your smile; you are still my love," she said as she held her arms around my waist as tightly as her human body was capable._

_I was home._

_But my happiness did not last long. Ten months were all I was given with the woman I loved before the Volturi showed up at our doorstep. I had broken the first law of the vampire world. I told a human about our existence, and I let her live._

" _Change her or die with her," was the choice I was given._

_I pleaded for more time. I was not yet ready; I would kill her. It was to no avail. Caius stood there, along with two more members of their Elite Guard._

_Elena looked into my eyes and pleaded, "Change me, my love. I trust you." And I knew that she did. The only thing that had saved me from death was my intention of changing her in the future, when I was ready, when I knew that I had overcome my bloodlust to a point in which I would be able to take her life and replace them with immortality._

_In my despair, I pleaded that they change her, but Caius refused. "Justice will be served," he said, "one way or the other. The Volturi do not offer prizes, only punishment." The meaning of his words was plain and I could argue no further._

" _I love you, my Elena," I whispered to her as I leaned my head to her vein._

" _I love you too," she whispered back and I bit her._

_She flinched when my teeth sank into her neck, but she did not scream. My demon roared. I was too young to change her, I knew that, just as well as Caius and his guards did._

_As soon as I tasted her blood, there was no coming back. The frenzied beast inside me took over my mind and I drained Elena dry within seconds._

_I broke into tearless sobs when the red haze cleared from my mind. I held my lover's limp body in my arms and wept. The taste of her blood was still fresh on my tongue and the guilt lay heavy on my chest. I hated myself for taking the life of the only woman I would ever love while the vampire within me still rejoiced over the taste of her blood._

" _Justice is served," Caius said with a satisfied smirk and walked away, followed by his guards._

_That was the day I truly realized that I was, and forever would be, a monster._

I hated the memories of that day. They tainted the beautiful days that I had spent with my Elena during the final months of her life, but I could never forget the glint of satisfaction in Caius's eyes at my grief.

Standing there in the clearing, hearing that the Volturi were once again about to bring death to my doorstep I could think of nothing else but the voice of my Elena.

" _I love you..."_

" _I trust you..."_

" _Change me..."_

Upon hearing that, once again, a human would be involved and that she would bring death upon us, I relived the death of my Elena all over again. The grief and guilt that were never too far from my mind, surfaced and tore me apart from the inside.

Decades ago, the voice of my Elena taught me a new way of life, one that did not carry overwhelming amounts of guilt. I was traveling through a forest in Russia when I heard her voice whispering in my mind for the first time. _Drink from the bear,_ her voice said.

I thought I was losing my mind. I searched around, intent on finding the source of the sound, but could find no one there. I listened, but there was nothing but the bear and a small herd of deer further away to the north.

 _Drink from the bear,_ Elena whispered again.

It took me three more days before I finally listened. Only after draining the bear dry, I understood. _A new life..._ she whispered one last time and her voice disappeared.

The second time I had heard her was in the United States. I was hunting, and her voice suddenly whispered to me, _Go north. Save him._ There was so much urgency in her voice that I did not stop to second guess. I followed the scent of human blood, and the whispers of directions in my head. Elena had brought me to the human Dale. He was being mauled by a grizzly bear, and he was on the verge of death.

 _Change him_ , she said. I knew there was no other hope for him, so that is what I did. Three days later, I earned the first companion to this existence ever since Elena's death.

After finding Dale, I would hear Elena's voice more often. She would warn me whenever Dale was about to slip or when I was heading towards danger. One time, though, she told me not to go with Dale. I found that odd, irrational even, so I did not listen. That night was the first time I had slipped ever since embracing my new diet. Dale met his singer and the bloodlust in him sparked mine. I killed a woman that night, and I would forever torment myself for that.

I did not dare ignore Elena's warnings after that. No matter how irrational they might have seemed in my eyes, I always listened and followed.

With time, Elena led me to find Esme, too, at the graveyard in Ohio. _Protect her_ , she ordered, so I did. Esme became my second companion to this life. She was not someone to replace Elena, but I could not deny that it was nice having a female around.

From that day on, whenever I had heard Elena's voice whispering to me, I did not doubt that she was taking care of me. I did not know how it was possible or why it was happening. I simply embraced the whispers of my love's voice every time I heard it, because it was my only connection to her.

When I met the Cullens, Elena's whisper carried a warning.

_The guard is your enemy. He will bring you to your death._

Elena's warning confirmed what my instincts had already told me of Edward. Ever since the day he was brought to my family, I knew he was trouble. Edward would bring death, just like those guards had oh so many years ago. His threat had made it all feel real, and I could feel the fear deep within my bones. I feared for the new family I had created, but they had betrayed me.

 _Run, my love. Save yourself. Live. For me,_ Elena whispered, confirming my fears. Her voice was the only one I could have, and would have, listened to.

I tried to save them. I tried to take Esme and Dale with me, but they would not listen. They chose to stay and face the danger. They chose death, and Elena wouldn't let me do the same.

 _Live,_ she said, _for me..._

The whisper grew distant, and my sense of dread rose to unbearable heights. I needed to leave. I had to run and save myself. If I had stayed, then I would have brought my own death upon me. I wanted to save my family—save them and maybe repent a little for the loss of my Elena—but they chose to stay.

 _I love you,_ I heard her whisper. _Come to me,_ she pleaded. I could have sworn I saw her eyes boring into me at that moment. So I did as she said. Elena had not failed me on previous occasions. I trusted that she would not fail me this time either.

I bolted away from that clearing, pushing myself as hard as I could. Putting as much distance between myself and the imminent danger of the Volturi as was possible. I crossed the border within minutes. I did not stop until I had reached my new house in Vancouver.

 _Leave._ Elena's voice carried the same urgency as it did before.

"Where should I go, my love?" I asked her.

_Alaska. Denali._

"What am I looking for?"

 _Alaska. Denali,_ she repeated, and I did not question her further.

w.W.w

While I was heading towards the Alaskan border, I took my time to think. I had so much to process, so much to think through... _Had I really just walked out on the only family that I had had after Elena's death?_

It was painful, not nearly as painful as losing my beloved Elena, of course, but painful nonetheless. I spent almost two decades with Esme, and more than seven with Dale. They were truly my family, my brother and sister. How could have I left them?

_Oh my god, what have I done?_

I sank to my knees in the middle of the forest and buried my face in my hands. I did not want to leave them—I knew that Elena would not have told me to leave unless there was a good reason for it—but my resolve was already wavering, and I was contemplating going back there and pleading for their forgiveness. I did not want to spend the rest of my miserable existence alone. _I don't think I will survive_.

I was back on my feet and turning around to go back when I heard Elena's whisper in my thoughts.

_Don't turn around. Go to Alaska. Go to Denali._

"I don't think I can do that, Elena. I need them. They are my family. I have to go back and apologize," I whispered. I never talked back to her, not even in my thoughts, but I did now. I did because my family was important to me and because I finally had to face reality. Elena wasn't ever coming back to me, no matter how many times I heard her voice in my thoughts. Elena was dead, but my family was still alive, even if they weren't really breathing and no longer had a pulse. I wanted to fight for them; I _needed_ to fight for them.

_Not yet. Soon._

"They might not forgive me if I don't come back now."

_They will, I promise. Have I ever given you cause to doubt me?_

I felt ashamed. No, she never did. On the contrary, she had always been proven right. I still shuddered at the memory of that single time that I did not listen to her. The life I had taken then.

_Go, my love. Go to Alaska. Go to Denali._

"Denali is a great wilderness. What am I looking for, my love?"

_Alaska. Denali._

I did not like the fact that she was being so cryptic. Although it was not something new by any means, I still did not like it.

"Fine," I said, my tone more curt than I would have liked it to be. "I'm sorry," I added instantly. "I did not mean to be so rude to you, my love."

_I forgive you._

I waited for several more minutes, but she did not say anything else. I turned around once again and began moving in the direction my love was leading me.

w.W.w

It was in the early morning hours that I entered the Denali wilderness. I immediately caught the scent of several vampires. There were at least six different scents that I could identify, neither one of them was familiar to me. I hesitated. I was about to step into the territory of an unusually large coven that I had never met; this could prove rather deadly. Our kind rarely traveled in groups that were larger than two or three. Four was extremely rare. Five was unheard of. Six...only the Volturi were this large of a coven.

_Was it really a smart choice to invade their territory?_

I tasted the air once again. One of the trails was recent, no more than a few hours old. The rest were a little faded, but still strong, probably only a few days old.

I continued to make my way through the vast wilderness, coming across the six scents over and over again. Some trails were old, others fresh. They weren't always together. Sometimes I would find trails of only two of the scents—intertwined together—while other times, there was just one of them. I tried to stay at the edges of their territory, thinking that maybe I could 'slip under their radar', so to speak.

I came across a mountain lion and decided that a hunt would be a nice distraction from my thoughts. It had been only a week since I last hunted, and I usually did not need to hunt more than once every two weeks or so, but I needed the distraction. For several minutes, I let the demon inside me to take control and as I sank my teeth into the neck of the lion, and the warm blood felt wonderful as it flowed down my throat.

When I was done and the carcass was buried, I made my way to a nearby lake to clean myself up. I wasn't a messy eater, definitely nothing like Dale who would come back from a hunting trip in desperate need of a change of clothes—as he was one who liked to play with his food—but I never did manage to walk away from a hunt spotless—the way Edward always did.

I stripped off my clothes, hanged them on a nearby tree branch, and entered the lake. For a human, the water would have been freezing. The air temperature couldn't have been higher than the high forties and the lake was even colder. I, on the other hand, had a body temperature that was lower than both the air and the water, so it felt pleasantly warm.

I let my thoughts wander. It had been so long since the last time I lived like this, like a nomad. I did not miss this life. I liked having a running shower with hot water fresh clothes, and soft linens to lay on when I felt like relaxing and reading a book—something that I did not really get to enjoy very often in my human days— but I came to realize that living as a wayfarer was not too bad.

I was so caught up in my thoughts that I did not even hear the approaching danger until it was too late. I only had enough time to leap out of the lake and into my pants before the vampire appeared in front of me.

* * *

**We finally have some details about Rosalie, what do you think her wish was? Also, I hope that this chapter helped clear the mystery behind David's reaction in chapter 11 ("Doubts"). Who do you think is the vampire in the end?**

**Thank you all for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	18. Vampires

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Edward**

Bella had been quiet throughout the drive. I watched her from the corner of my eye while driving to the house on the outskirts of town. She didn't seem to be in any pain, which was very reassuring.

_What is going on in that shielded mind of yours, Isabella?_

I felt my phone vibrate and quickly answered the call. _Alice_.

" _She's going to figure it out."_

"When?"

" _Seventy-two seconds after you arrive at the house."_

I was admiring Bella's extraordinary mind while cursing her perception. Her knowledge would be her death sentence.

"How longer until you'll be at the house?" I wanted everyone to be there when we arrived. We would deal with it together.

" _I already called Carlisle and Esme. They are waiting for you. If you keep driving at your current speed, Jasper, Emmett, and I will get there before you. Jasper will be able to tell you how she feels."_

"Thank you, Alice," I said and she hung up.

I looked at Bella. She was still deep in thought and did not seem to notice the phone call. I could practically see the wheels turning in her mind. I was curious to know how was it that she would be able to guess so quickly. I had only met her, officially, on the day before. _She might have seen me today..._ I knew that I had moved in my natural speed when I darted across the gym to catch her, but I was beyond reason when I was faced with the possibility of her being hurt.

My inner demon roared and rattled in the cage it'd been locked in for the past few years. I hadn't had a decent fight in quite a while now, and it was getting bored. It was also furious at the denial I had forced upon it earlier. Both my vampire side and my human side wanted nothing more than to eliminate the threat to what was mine. And there was no doubt in my mind now, Bella was _mine._

I allowed myself a glance at her exposed neck. The pale white skin was nothing but a paper-thin layer that covered the sweet nectar pulsing underneath. I took a deep breath, and the fire roared in my throat, but this time my desire was not to kill her; I wanted to _mark_ her. I wanted the whole world to know that she was _mine_.

_My mate._

I never knew how powerful the ties were. I had seen thousands of minds; I had read countless thoughts; I had witnessed more mated vampires than I cared to think about. Nothing prepared me for the all-consuming pull to this _human_ girl. I couldn't stop myself from wondering. _If this is the way she affects me as a human, how will it be when she is immortal?_

That was where I had to stop myself. Could I really condemn another human being to my existence? Esme was already dying when I had changed her; she had no other choice but death.

_Why am I even thinking about that now? Getting ahead of myself much?_

I parked the Audi in the driveway of the house and cut off the engine. Bella didn't seem to be aware that we had stopped at first, but then I saw her eyes scanning over the house. I was about to say something, but Alice cut me off.

_Edward, let her think._

I saw Alice and Jasper standing in the living room. The tinted glass wall that covered the front of the house did not block my vision as it no doubt blocked Bella's human sense of sight. Esme and Emmett were sitting on the couch, and Carlisle was in his study, preparing the medical equipment he would need to treat Bella.

Alice had already brought everyone up to speed. Emmett was almost giddy with excitement. Esme was conflicted between feelings of happiness and worry. She was nearly overjoyed that I was bringing Bella home, albeit under different circumstances than she might have hoped for, and she was worried about the possibilities of Bella's reaction to our secret and the repercussions of said reaction on the rest of our family. Carlisle seemed to be both amused at Bella's injury and concerned about her wellbeing. It amazed me that during the very short time we had spent together we had truly become a family.

 _Bella is worried,_ Jasper informed me in his thoughts.

"No shit, Sherlock," I mumbled under my breath. "It doesn't take an empath to know that."

_But it may not be for the reasons you are thinking about. She is one peculiar human, I'll give you that._

"I know." I smiled.

 _She is worried, but she is not afraid. Her worry is underlined with a feeling of being unworthy and a strong desire for approval. I'd say that it seems as though she's worried that your 'family' will not approve of her, that she is not worthy of you._ Jasper was amused at that, and I had to agree; only Bella would be more worried about being worthy rather than worry for her self-preservation when facing a house full of vampires. From what I was able to learn about her in these past weeks, Bella was prone to underestimating herself. She was completely unaware of her beauty, both the inner beauty of her soul and the perfection of her body.

But still, I had to ask. "So you are worried not because you'll be in a house full of vampires, but because you think they won't approve of you?"

Bella turned her head and stared at me. Her deep brown eyes widened with shock and her lips parted slightly. Her reaction, though, was nothing compared to the reactions of the five vampires in the house.

Emmett was laughing so hard that I was sure even Bella could hear him. Esme was shocked, her thoughts incomprehensible for the moment. Carlisle's thoughts were disapproving. _I'm not sure scaring the girl half to death is the right way to handle things, Edward_. Jasper was considering inflicting some grievous bodily harm to me later today, and Alice was smiling, her thoughts were surprisingly calm. _Well, that was one way of doing it, Edward._

Carlisle was the only one to speak aloud. "Bring her inside, Edward," he said. _We might as well get it over with._ "There is no point in you two sitting in the car all afternoon, and I happen to remember that she still needs medical attention."

I was out of the car and opening her door before Bella had time to recover from her shock. She actually jumped when I reappeared next to her and said, "We better get you inside so Carlisle could have a look at that ankle."

She was still speechless, and I was beginning to worry that she might be going into clinical shock. I lifted her from her seat and turned to the house, kicking the car door closed behind me. The noise of the shutting door seemed to bring her back from her stupor.

"Vampires?" she whispered, her eyes focused on mine.

"Yes," I confirmed. I carried her past the living room and directly into Carlisle's study on the second floor, moving in my natural speed. _Subjecting Bella to the entire household at once may not be the best idea right now,_ I decided.

"Hello, Bella," Carlisle greeted her as soon as I entered his study. _Put her on the couch, Edward,_ he instructed.

"Hello, Dr. Cullen." Bella smiled at him. I hid my own smile. Bella was definitely nothing like any other human. Jasper noted that she was still anxious and worried, but that she was also amused, curious, and awed.

"Please, call me Carlisle," he told her, returning her smile. "I understand that it is your ankle that had been injured this time?"

Bella nodded. "I fell," she said and a beautiful scarlet tainted her cheeks.

"Yes, so I have heard."

"When?" Bella asked, surprised.

"Alice called me to say that Edward was on his way here with you," Carlisle replied. While his demeanor seemed calm, his thoughts revealed that he was angry underneath. He truly cared about Bella. Their connection had been established over the passing year or so that they had known each other, and he was absolutely livid at the idea of anyone harming her intentionally. "May I?" he asked, moving to lift her injured ankle.

Bella nodded again. Her eyes were flickering between my face and Carlisle. I leaned against the desk and watched them.

"I'm taking Jasper, Emmett, and Esme to hunt," Alice said from the living room. "Call me when Bella is ready for all of us." Her voice was only loud enough for Carlisle and me to hear.

"Thank you, Alice," I answered in the same low tone. Seconds later, I heard the front door being opened and then closed as they left.

Carlisle took off Bella's shoe and pulled her leg into his lap, examining the damage. "Well, it does not seem that you have a fracture, so a simple bandage will be sufficient," he said as he pulled the bandage and began wrapping it snuggly around her ankle. "You will need to give your ankle a rest for a few days and keep it lifted when you sit or lie down. I will write you a note for school before you leave." His words ended in a questioning tone.

"Well, I don't think I will be running away any time soon." Bella smiled. "Besides, I'm sure you'll be able to catch me anyway. I think you run a little faster than me." Her eyes glanced at me and then back to Carlisle.

"A little," he agreed, finishing with her ankle. _How much does she know?_ he asked me.

"I'm not sure myself," I answered quietly.

"You know, it's not nice to talk over my head like that." Bella's eyes met mine, and her disapproval was evident in her posture—her hands were folded under her breasts and her eyes were boring into mine. She looked a lot like an angry kitten, and I could not help being amused.

"I was wondering how much you knew," Carlisle answered. I could see that he was amazed at her reaction. It was nothing like he would have ever expected.

"Well, I don't really know myself," she said, frustrated. "I've been doing some reading, but not much of it made sense. I was actually wondering whether I would be a pet or a meal while we were driving here." She looked sheepish admitting to her thoughts.

"While you do smell appetizing, I can honestly say that you are not on tonight's menu," I said. Carlisle's head snapped at me, his expression partly horrified and partly angry.

I nodded towards Bella who was fighting to keep herself from smiling, failing miserably. She was watching Carlisle's reaction, and even without reading her thoughts, I knew that she was enjoying both his reaction and my quirky sense of humor.

"She's not your typical human, Carlisle," I said with a smile.

He turned back to look at her. "Most definitely not," he murmured under his breath.

w.W.w

Bella never stopped amazing me. She listened carefully to Carlisle's story; her compassionate nature caused more than a few tears to fall when she listened to him. She also proved to be amazingly perceptive, and most of the facts about vampires that we told her about were things she had already noticed by herself.

I was about to ask Bella if she would like to meet the rest of my family when I heard her stomach grumble in protest. Her face was absolutely burning with her blush, and I worked very hard on holding in my laughter.

"I will call Alice and have her pick up some food for you. Is there anything in particular that you would like?" I asked.

"Anything is fine with me. I'm not picky," Bella said, still looking sheepish.

Before I was able to dial Alice's number, my cell phone vibrated. "Hello, Alice."

" _I am on my way back, and I'm bringing pizza. We will be there in a few minutes."_

"Thanks," I said with a smile. Sometimes having a psychic sister had its perks.

" _You're welcome,"_ she said and hung up.

Bella watched me curiously. "Some vampires are gifted. Alice is psychic. She saw what I was going to ask her, so she already took care of it. she'll be here in a few minutes with a pizza for you."

"Jasper is also gifted." Carlisle continued speaking. "He is an empath. He can both feel the emotions around him and manipulate them. Edward here can hear our thoughts."

"You are a mind reader?" she asked, biting her lip. Her face was flushed red, and I couldn't help but wonder what she was thinking that she was so embarrassed about.

"Yes. I can hear the thoughts of any human or vampire within a three-mile radius apart from one," I looked at her pointedly, "yours."

Carlisle watched me with great interest. _You did not mention this before._

"You can't hear my thoughts?" She seemed relieved, and my curiosity piqued once again.

"No, which is both terribly annoying and surprisingly relaxing," I admitted.

Bella tilted her head, and I saw her own interest pique in those beautiful chocolate eyes of hers.

"It is annoying because I can't help but wonder what is going through your mind, because you never react the way I expect you to, the way I had come to expect from humans in general. And it is relaxing because, unlike some gifts that can be controlled willingly, I can't shut down the thoughts that I hear."

"That must be hard," she said under her breath. I did not think that she meant for me to hear it.

"So it is very refreshing to be around you." I smiled. _Among other things…_ I added internally. "I can hear the others approaching. May I carry you downstairs so you could meet the rest of our family?" I asked her.

She laughed.

I raised my brow at her.

"It's the first time you've asked," she explained. "The other times you simply whisked me away before I could gather my thoughts."

 _She's teasing me!_ This was a side of Bella that I had not had a chance to see before. _It's always the quiet ones..._

Carlisle did not hide his amusement at me, and I was glad that I was incapable of blushing. Bella seemed to have noticed my embarrassment—and really, was I actually expecting her to miss that?

"Thank you for your offer, and I would be glad if you can carry me to the first floor. I don't think I can handle the stairs right now."

w.W.w

We spent a great afternoon with Bella. She seemed to be fitting in wonderfully, as odd as it may sound for a human to fit in with a family of vampires; Bella had somehow been able to pull it off. While Bella ate, each of the family told her their stories. Emmett was first, telling her how he had lost his first fight with a grizzly bear, and another vampire, one who shared our lifestyle, had saved him—David. Neither Emmett nor anyone else went into the details of how we met Carlisle, Alice, and Jasper. We felt that it was something that was best left for later, seeing as how we hadn't been able to get more information on Rosalie or the warning she gave us. Alice's story was next, and since I had already explained to Bella about her gift, her story was uncomplicated, much like Emmett's.

Jasper edited quite a bit of his story, leaving the gory details either vague or out of it entirely. Esme told Bella how she was changed while on a trip to Italy after her son's death, and how, many years later, she came across David and Emmett and they taught her how to exist without feeding off of humans. I could see the images of Esme's meeting with David and Emmett in her memory as she was telling her story to Bella. I flinched again when I was reminded of just _how_ close to losing her I had been.

"What about you, Edward?" Bella asked once Esme was finished.

"My story...It is a little more complicated." I began, hesitating about how to approach the subject when Alice cut me off.

"Charlie will be home in less than twenty minutes. Edward better take you home, Bella," she said. _You can tell her your story later and in private_. "And don't worry about dinner," Alice said before Bella could protest. "He's bringing over Chinese."

"Okay," Bella said. "Thank you for sharing your stories with me."

"You are welcome, Bella," Esme replied with a warm smile.

"It was our pleasure," said Carlisle.

"You're welcome, sugar," Jasper drawled, and I raised a brow at his accent. He smirked at me.

"No problem, Bella." Emmett winked at her.

Bella looked up at me. "I don't suppose you'll let me walk to your car, will you?"

"Not a chance." I smiled widely at her.

"Fine," she grumbled but didn't argue any further.

I carried her to my car, which was still parked in the driveway, and enjoyed the sensation of having her in my arms again. It felt good. Her blood still called to me, but her mind and body held much more appeal to me right now. I had a strange feeling that I could not harm her any more than I could rip off my own head. Somehow, her life was now so intertwined with my existence that I knew there couldn't be me without her.

Just like the drive from school, the drive to her house was spent in silence. Bella was once again deep in thought, probably processing everything she had heard tonight.

"Edward?" Bella turned to me once I parked in the driveway of her house, behind her truck.

"Yes?"

"What about your story? Will you tell me?" Her eyes were pleading, but I could see that she was biting her lip and fidgeting with the hem of her jacket. She seemed torn between being nervous, worried, and curious.

"It is not a pretty story, and we do not have the time for it right now. Charlie will be here in a few minutes." I paused and saw her whole demeanor plummet with disappointment. "But I promise I will tell you."

She didn't lift her gaze from her lap as she asked quietly, "When?"

I hesitated. On one hand, I wanted to tell her everything; I wanted her to know all there was to know about me and maybe get another glimpse into her beautiful mind. On the other hand, I wanted to spare her the knowledge of how much of a monster I really am.

My phone vibrated in my pocket at that moment.

_Tell her tonight after Charlie goes to bed._

_Alice._ I smiled. "I can come over later, once your father is sleeping," I suggested.

Her eyes met mine as soon as the words left my mouth, and I saw the smile in them spark for a moment, only to be replaced with worry once again. "Leave your window open, and I'll come in as soon as Charlie is asleep." I saw the worry leave her eyes, leaving them smiling and excited.

"I will," Bella promised.

"Good." I opened my door and made my way to open hers.

"You don't have to—"

"Don't argue," I cut her off as I picked her up and carried her to the front door.

"I can handle from here," she said as soon as she opened the front door.

"Alright. I'll see you later, Bella."

"See you later, Edward."

I could hear that Charlie's cruiser was only one block away from the house. I watched as Bella walked inside her house before I drove away.

w.W.w

**Bella**

_Is it possible that I just spent the entire afternoon in a house full of vampires listening to their stories? Well, not all of their stories...Edward has yet to share his own. But he didn't say no, he promised to tell me._ I mechanically turned the light on, momentarily blinded by the brightness of it after standing in the dark for god knows how long. I could hear Charlie's cruiser pulling in the driveway, and I knew it was time to snap out of it. I would have time to think about it later.

"Hi Dad," I called from the kitchen when I heard the front door open.

"Hi Bells, how was your day?"

"It was fine." _I spent the day with six vampires. How crazy is that?_ I shook my head, mentally slapping myself, and listened as Charlie took off his shoes and hung his gun-belt. He had never shot his gun on the job as far as I knew, but he had always made sure it was clean and ready in case he ever needed to use it. Personally, I hoped it would remain unused. "How was work?"

"Nothing much, there had been some sightings of bears around the reservation." Charlie walked into the kitchen as he spoke. "So I would like you to keep away from the woods, Bells."

"Since when do I go _in_ the woods, Dad?" I asked with half a smile. He should know better.

Charlie returned my smile. "I know, but still."

"Okay, Dad," I promised. _I don't think I need to worry about bears when I'm hanging around vampires and werewolves..._ "How about dinner? Is there anything you'd like?"

"Actually, I brought us Chinese." Charlie smiled sheepishly. "Unless you already have something cooked?" he quickly added.

"No, that's okay. Actually, I didn't start on dinner yet. Chinese sounds great."

"Good. I'll bring in the food while you finish setting the table," he said and walked out of the kitchen.

"Okay," I called after him, my forehead wrinkled in wonder. _Where did he leave the food?_

It didn't take long to finish setting the table, even with my injured ankle. _There are things to be said in favor of a small kitchen_ , I thought as I did my best to put as little weight on my left side as possible.

"Bella?"

"Yes?" I looked up to see Charlie watching me carefully.

"What happened to your leg?"

"Um...I fell?" _More like I was tripped, but there's no need to go into the gory details._ "I tripped in gym."

Charlie shook his head and chuckled, but he didn't say anything else about it. We made some small talk during dinner; neither one of us seemed to want more than that. When we were done, I threw away the empty cardboard boxes and put the plates in the sink.

"Leave them to me, Bells," Charlie said when I was about to start washing the dishes.

"Okay, thanks, Dad. I'll be upstairs. Good night."

"Good night Bells." I turned to walk out of the kitchen— _hell, limp out of the kitchen might be a more accurate description_ —when Charlie called from behind me. "You need any help with the stairs?"

"No, I'm okay, Dad." I did _not_ want Charlie to try to carry me, let alone up a flight of stairs. Unlike Edward, Charlie was human and capable of getting an aching back after lifting something too heavy. _That, or with my luck, Charlie could trip and make us both fall._

I leaned heavily on the wall and took the stairs one step at a time. _Slow and steady. Slow and steady,_ I chanted mentally.

By the time I finished with my shower, brushed my teeth, and changed into my pajamas, I was exhausted and my ankle was killing me. I lay on my bed and let my mind wander.

I wasn't stupid. I knew that most of the vampires—if not all—had edited their stories. Jasper's was undeniably the most gruesome of them all. Even without hearing all the details, I could imagine that fighting the Southern Wars with armies of newborn vampires was not a pleasant atmosphere for anyone, let alone someone with Jasper's type of gift.

Carlisle's story made me respect him all the more, Alice's story made me ache for her, Emmett seemed to be the most easy-going out of them all, and Esme's story seemed very lacking. I could only assume that her story was tied to that of Edward. They exchanged several glances and silent conversations to make me suspect so. Given the knowledge of Edward's gift, I imagined that Esme had been asking him how much he wanted her to tell me. _But he promised to fill in the gaps tonight,_ I reminded myself.

I tried to connect the information I had learned today to the different myths I dug out in my research. _Well, definitely no stake to the heart,_ I thought, remembering the ease with which Edward carried me and the scene when Alice— _tiny_ Alice—lifted the couch using only one hand. I learned today that they _were_ immortal, unlike the Irish mythology claimed, and that the myth of the Succubus was no myth at all. In fact, Carlisle was personally acquainted with the three sisters who had created the myth in the first place.

Although the three were not blood-related, they were all of Slavic descent and with their vampiric characteristics could very easily pass as sisters. Carlisle explained that, originally, the sisters drank human blood like most vampires do, but with time they had developed a conscience and started relying on animal blood to sustain themselves.

"You seem to be deep in thought." Edward's voice came from the open window and tore me away from my thoughts.

"You came," I breathed and felt myself blush.

"I said I would, didn't I? I'm a vampire of my word." Edward smiled. "May I come in?"

"Well, you are kind of already in," I pointed out. He was leaning on the windowsill with his ankles crossed in front of him.

He chuckled. "I guess you're right."

I smiled, momentarily mesmerized by the change in his features when he laughed.

"How are you feeling?" he asked in a concerned tone.

"I'm fine," I replied automatically.

He raised a brow and looked pointedly at my ankle.

"It's not that bad, really," I promised.

"Do you have a spare pillow?"

"Sure, in the linen closet, why—?" He was gone before I could finish the question. I pulled myself up and was about to call him when he reappeared with a pillow in his hands.

"Get under the covers and put this under your ankle; it will help reduce the swelling," he instructed.

"Sure, Doc," I said with a chuckle. I got under the warm blanket and Edward helped me put the pillow under my ankle as I leaned back against the headboard. "I see Carlisle is rubbing off on you," I teased.

"Well, maybe." He smiled, sitting on the edge of my bed. "But I do have my own medical degree, three of them, actually." He winked.

I couldn't be sure he wasn't teasing me again.

"I may not have practiced medicine, but I do possess the theoretical knowledge," he said, clearly reading the confusion on my face.

"Wow," I whispered. "How old _are_ you?"

"Eighteen." He smiled.

"How long have you been eighteen?"

"A while."

I frowned, folding my hands across my chest and glared at him. "I thought you said you'll tell me your story."

"I will. You're just too fun to tease. I couldn't help myself."

I huffed, and he began laughing. All thoughts of being offended for the tease disappeared when I heard the sound of his laughter. It was a deep, melodic, and manly sound, so appealing and captivating that I felt myself relax into a smile of my own.

"I like your smile," he said once his laughter subsided. "And your blush," he added when said blush burned my cheeks and I had to look away. "Are you comfortable?" he asked, his tone suddenly serious.

I nodded.

"Okay." He took a deep breath. "So here is my story. I must warn you it is not a pretty one, and I'm not sure you will be comfortable having me in your bedroom once you hear it, but I made you a promise, and I intend on keeping it."

I nodded again, not trusting myself to speak. _How bad could it be?_

* * *

**I know, I know, another cliffhanger.**

**The next chapter will start with Edward's story. It is not the same as the one in the saga (obviously), so I hope you will enjoy it.**

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	19. This is My Life Story

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

"Before I start telling you my story, I must warn you; I will not be cutting corners." Edward began his story, looking firmly into my eyes. "I'm going to tell you everything. Some of it isn't known to anyone else, and most of it isn't pretty. Hell, some of things in my past are the stuff of nightmares. So I will ask you again: are you sure you want to hear it?"

I paused. I knew I wanted to know everything there was to know about him, but was I ready to hear things I might _not_ like about him? That was another question entirely. _The real question here is, am I prepared to keep wondering? Isn't the truth always better than anything my imagination can conjure?_

It didn't take me long to come up with my answer. _Yes,_ I decided, _knowing the truth is better, and if I won't let him tell me, then I will always wonder about the details I am missing._

"Yes, I'm sure Edward," I said confidently. "I don't want you to cut corners. I prefer to hear the whole truth rather than fill the gaps with my imagination."

"As you wish." He was watching me carefully, looking for traces of doubt.

_You aren't going to find any._

After several moments of silence, Edward began to speak.

"I don't remember much of my human life, but I will tell you as much as I can."

I nodded.

"I was born on June 20th, 1901. My mother's name was Elizabeth Masen and my father's name was Edward Thomas Masen. Although my father always went by the name Thomas, I was named Edward after him. I had no brothers or sisters. I think that my mother was unable to have children after she gave birth to me, but I don't remember for certain.

"My father was a very successful businessman in his own right, but both he and my mother came from wealthy families, so I was quite spoiled. I remember being loved by both of my parents very much, and I remember the way my father and mother used to look into each other's eyes and how it always made me feel warm and wistful." Edward smiled. The expression on his face made me ache; it was a look of pure love. _I wish someday, someone would look at me with that kind of expression on his face…No, not someone. I have to be honest with myself. I wish Edward would look at ME like that._

"When World War I broke, I was captivated by the glory of battle. I was eager to become a soldier myself. My parents did not want me to take part in the fighting, and I remember hearing my mother pray for the war to end." His eyes were sad as he continued to speak. "A few weeks after my seventeenth birthday, my father became suddenly ill. My father was a strong man, so my mother and I were absolutely shocked and grief stricken when he died only three days later. He had fallen to a killer that did not fight with guns, yet it killed more people than the war."

"The Spanish Influenza," I whispered, recalling the detail from my history lessons.

"Yes." Edward nodded. "My father was the first victim in my family. I was the next one to become sick, and I was soon followed by my mother. By the end of the summer of 1918, we were both hospitalized and on our deathbeds."

I felt the tears welling in my eyes and placed my hand gently on his knee, offering what little comfort I could. Edward flashed me a smile that made my insides tingle with warmth.

"My mother died at the end of September, and I came very close to following her, but something unexpected happened—I survived. The doctors called it miraculous. My friends called it me being too stubborn to die. For whatever reason, I was alive, and I was grateful for it. I remember very little about the events of the following year. I was mostly cooped up in my parents' house, grieving. As the year was drawing to a close yet again, my friends decided that they would not let me sulk anymore, and they literally dragged me out of my house.

"They took me to a ball in the outskirts of town. It turned out to be a masquerade ball, which meant that it was an open invitation for infidelity, and I immediately regretted going. I tried to leave but my friends would not let me, instead they made sure that my glass was never empty.

"It was halfway through the party, and I was fairly intoxicated by then, when I noticed a woman following me with her eyes. She was pale and had long flowing raven hair and dark eyes. There was something unnaturally beautiful about her, and in my drunken state, I was easy prey."

 _Literally,_ I thought with a chill.

"When she slipped past the French doors to the balcony, I followed her outside. I did not even stop to wonder why a lady would walk outside to the December snow. I simply made my way through the crowded room, intent on finding her. I did not know why I wanted to find her; it felt like I had a primal need to do so. Only much later I learned that it was the effect of her gift that made me follow her."

"What was her gift?"

"She could sense the potential for power within a human or a vampire and then lure them to her."

"Sounds like a jailbait," I murmured.

Edward chuckled and smirked, clearly hearing my words, and I blushed in response. "I guess you could say that, in a way, you do get a death sentence if you are tempted by her."

"Did she bite you?"

"No, she simply knocked me unconscious and took me to Italy."

"Why Italy?"

"The Volturi. They are the law keepers of our world. Three brothers who lead the vampire world. Their names are Marcus, Caius, and Aro. She took me to Aro, as he is the one who sent her on the hunt, and he was the one who turned me. The three brothers are both very old and very powerful vampires. They make the rules and enforce them. They have ruled the vampire world for over two thousand years and keep a permanent residence in Italy.

"Lucrezia kept me unconscious for the entire trip from Chicago to Italy; she did not want to test herself and risk Aro's wrath. All I was aware of was darkness after she knocked me out and then the burning sensation of the change."

I had so many questions running through my mind. I did not want to stop his story, but I wasn't sure I understood. _Why didn't Lucrezia change him herself? Why would Aro be angry if she killed him? What was the risk of keeping him conscious? Do the brothers have any gifts?_

"I can see the questions in your eyes," Edward smiled at me, "and I will explain everything, I promise."

I nodded.

"Aro is a very powerful mind reader. He is limited in a way that I am not, but he is much more powerful. I can hear every mind around me within a three-mile radius, but I only hear the thoughts that are currently passing through. Aro can hear every single thought that a mind ever had, with one simple touch. So if Lucrezia killed me by accident, the moment Aro touched her, he would have known that she lost him a potentially powerful new member to the guard. That is why I was kept unconscious.

"As for why she did not just change me herself, there are two reasons for it. The first is that she lacked the necessary amount of self-control, and the second is the lack of control of a newborn vampire. Lucrezia, as a human drinker—and most of our kind are; animal drinkers are a very rare exception—knew that she would not be able to change me without killing me. She couldn't simply bite me; she had to bite and inject enough venom into my body to initiate the change but then stop before she drained me of my blood. When we taste human blood, a sort of frenzy begins and it's almost impossible to stop.

"The second reason is that Lucrezia could not travel with me immediately after my change. As a newborn vampire, I would have been much stronger than she, physically because of the human tissue that still lingers in my body, and I would have been crazy with bloodlust. Any human within smelling distance would have been drained by me before you could blink. And while Lucrezia couldn't care less about human lives, the prospect of possible exposure—followed by a death sentence from the Volturi—was enough to deter her from attempting to change me before we arrived to Italy, where there will be others that will be able to restrain me if necessary. Keeping our existence a secret from the human world is the first and most important law of our world." He paused. "Before I continue with my own story, do you have any more questions?"

"Is Aro the only one who is talented out of the three brothers?"

"No. Marcus also has a gift, and a very useful one at that. Marcus can read the bonds between two people—human or immortal—and tell its strength and type. He can tell if two people are feeling familial love towards each other, if they are romantically involved, if they hate each other, and so on. Caius does not have a gift of his own, but he is a very experienced warrior and tactician. It also helps that his mate, Athenodora, and Aro's mate, Sulpicia, are blood sisters."

"You mean to say that Aro is less likely to get rid of his brother in law, even if he is useless to him?" I asked. "That's cold."

"Well, we are cold creatures." He winked.

"Yeah, I guess that much is true." I chuckled. "So, what happened when you reached Italy?"

"Once we were in Italy, Lucrezia brought me to Aro, and he initiated the change. The pain of the transformation is the worst kind of pain imaginable. It is a sensation that feels as though your whole body is burning and there is lava flowing in your veins. While burning, I had no way of tracking the time or knowing when the pain would end. I wished for death many times, and in a way, my body was truly dying. With the final beat of my heart, the burning pain in my entire body stopped. I was only left with the burn in my throat—the thirst for blood.

"Just like other newborns, for the first week there was very little I cared about other than blood and self-preservation. Only after a week, the red haze of the bloodlust finally broke long enough for me to understand what I had become. A monster."

I kept quiet, not really knowing what to say.

A long minute had passed before he spoke again. "I was rarely lucid during my first few months as a vampire. My throat burned almost constantly. My senses were much sharper than my human senses before that, and it was very disorienting. Add to that the fact that I heard voices, and I was nearly going mad. In fact, I was pretty sure that—at least at the beginning—I _was_ going mad." Edward chuckled darkly. "My gift may have been a burden at first, but it also helped me gain control faster. I needed to learn control over my gift. I had to learn how to tune out the thoughts to the level of background noise, so I could listen to what was actually being said around me."

"How _does_ your gift work?" I asked, glad for the opportunity to change the focus of the conversation.

"It is a lot like being in a crowded room where everyone is talking at the same time. People's thoughts have the same pitch as their actual voices, so it is easier for me to recognize them in my mind. Once I pick a single voice in the crowd, I can focus my attention to it and the rest fade slightly to the background. It also helps having a vampire mind that can focus on more than one thing at a time, especially since I cannot turn it off, only ignore. I think a human would have gone mad."

"I'm sure I would have," I murmured under my breath.

"Probably," he agreed. "But even with the control I was gaining, I was still a newborn. The moment I smelled a human, my mind would not be able to focus on anything other than the blood flowing in his veins. My throat would burn, and I would have done anything to quench my thirst."

 _Anything?_ I thought, afraid to ask.

"Anything. I would tear limbs and bite the heads off of anyone trying to restrain me," Edward said firmly.

Apparently, I did not need to voice my question. _Mom did always say she could read me like an open book…_

"As I regained control, the Volturi began training me in combat techniques. As a newborn, I would rely on my instincts to fight, going for the most obvious kill, but that also made me as easy target, so they trained me. The Volturi are nothing if not thorough, so I was trained not only to fight using my gift, but also how to fight without it."

"How was that possible? I thought you said you can't turn your gift off." I frowned. _Was it possible for someone to turn off their thoughts?_

"I can't, but they did have a vampire who could shield the mind of my opponent and thus effectively turn _their_ thoughts off," he explained. "I became a skilled fighter, both with and without my gift to my advantage. If my opponents were not gifted, I could take on six at a time. I don't know how many I could take without using my gift since Renata was never able to shield more than one person at a time." He shrugged, seemingly dismissing his abilities, but I could sense that he was proud in his training. "Once I gained sufficient control, I was officially joined as a member of the guard. With the benefit of my gift, I was able to do that very quickly, probably faster than anyone would have expected. As a member of the Volturi, I was sent to various missions."

 _These Volturi guys begin to remind me of Section One..._ "Missions, great. Did you also have a tall blonde by the name of Nikita on your team?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

Edward looked puzzled. "What?"

"Nothing," I said quickly. "Stupid TV series," I mumbled under my breath.

Edward chuckled, and I blushed. _Stupid vampire hearing!_

"You were telling me about the missions," I reminded him, trying to steer the conversation back to his story.

Edward smiled briefly. "Yes. Every time there was a problem in our world, a vampire or a coven breaking the rules, the guard would be dispatched to deal with them."

"And by 'deal with them' you mean kill them, right?" _Definitely Section One…_

"Not always, but for the most part—yes," he said simply. "Having me by his side, Aro could hear every thought that is running through the minds of whoever was on the battlefield. He only had to touch me. Every mission that required Aro's presence, he would take me along. With time, I was rewarded with a promotion to the Elite Guard, which is sort of like the Volturi's version to the human Special Forces. It meant that I was given teams to lead during missions, and a better accommodation than those of the simple members of the guard. It also meant that I became a lot closer to the three brothers, allowing me to gain their favors.

"For a while, I was content. I came to see myself as the soldier I had always wanted to be, be it in a different sort of army but a soldier nonetheless. I had all the fame and glory I could have asked for. I fed whenever I wanted, and I killed anyone who would dare cross me or pose a threat to my leaders." He paused and then added quietly, "I was like a trained puppy working for rewards."

"Rewards?" I asked, puzzled. _What could possibly be a reward to a vampire soldier?_

"Rewards came in different forms," Edward said. "Sometimes they were material, sometimes it was sex, and sometimes it was food. Some of the guard liked to play with their food, and the brothers used that as a reward as well."

I could hear his hesitation. "Tell me."

"There were more than a few members of the guard who enjoyed human partners in bed," he finally said. "As long as the partner was not a child, it was permitted and even used as a reward in some cases."

I did not need to hear his thoughts to know that the humans involved did not survive the experience, nor that they were never asked for their opinion or consent. Another question came to my mind, and at that point, I knew that his answer _would_ be the turning point for me. I lowered my head before asking, "Did you…?"

He gently lifted my chin so I would look up, but I kept my eyes on my lap. I was afraid to see the confirmation in his face. I knew that if I saw it, I would truly see him as a monster. He might not have known another way to feed, other than human blood, but I did not think I could look past rape.

"Bella, look at me, please," he pleaded, and I could not refuse him any longer.

I lifted my gaze and met his eyes, biting my lip.

"No," he said firmly. "I have _never_ forced myself on a woman." I could see the determination in his face. "I have killed many, both male and female, and I am not proud of being a murderer, but I am _not_ a rapist." His voice was very quiet but very firm.

"I believe you," I whispered, relieved.

"Thank you," he said softly, dropping his hold on my chin. "But I never lacked female company." He continued looking down to his lap. "Seeing as I had a position in the Elite Guard and was one of Aro's favorite and most prized guards, female vampires were throwing themselves on me, and I never refused. As I saw it, they were using me to gain something, so I had no qualms in using them for my own pleasure. Hell, I even fucked the human receptionists the Volturi kept over the years." He smiled cynically. "Do you remember that Esme told you she was changed during her trip to Italy?"

"Yes, she said that she was mourning the death of her son and the trip was her way to get away from her hometown and the abusing husband of hers." I still felt angry that anyone could raise his hand on a sweet creature such as Esme. She was so delicate and kind.

"Yes. What she did not say—because I asked her not to—was that she was brought to the castle to serve as a meal to the Volturi."

"A meal?"

"Yes. The Volturi have been residing in Italy for hundreds of years. They do not allow feeding within their city limits as doing so would have exposed them very quickly. They have Heidi—another of Aro's pets—bring them tourists from outside of Italy. Esme was one of those tourists. There was something about her mind that drew me to her. Her thoughts were not filled with terror like the rest of the humans that were in the room; instead, they were filled with love for her son. By the time I reached her, she had already lost too much blood…"

"So you changed her."

Edward nodded. "It was the only thing I could think of. Something inside me would not allow her to die. Luckily for me, Esme never hated me for changing her. It was hard for her in the beginning, and Caius thought that I had officially lost my mind," he chuckled, "but I found something in Esme that I had been missing for four years, a mother." He had the most delicate smile on his face. It was very small, just a soft tug on the corners of his mouth, but I felt my heart squeeze inside my chest. Edward truly loved Esme like a mother.

"You were no longer alone," I whispered. I wasn't sure what made me come to that conclusion. After all, he was not really alone; he had the entire Volturi with him.

"You're right. Esme's presence meant that I was no longer alone. For the next sixty-four years, Esme made my existence bearable. I continued to struggle with what I was, a soulless monster who murdered others so it could exist, but Esme was there to comfort me and share that burden."

"Why only sixty-four years? What happened after that?"

"In 1986 Esme decided that she wanted to see the world. She had gained enough control to be able to travel on her own, and she was tired of living with the Volturi. We did not keep much contact since she was traveling mostly in uninhabited areas and cell phones were still rare and unreliable as a means of communication.

"After she left, I became increasingly depressed. Although I had a few close friends within the castle walls and more than enough willing sex partners, I lost the desire to live. Three years after her departure, I left the Volturi."

"Left? Where did you go?"

"I went to the most remote places on the face of the earth." He looked outside my window. His eyes were gazing on the dark skies as he spoke. It was so quietly that I could barely hear him. "I went looking for death."

I shivered. The mere concept of his death was painful to me. _Why am I reacting so strongly? Why does the thought of Edward not existing bring so much pain to me?_ I did not have answers yet, but I would have time to think about them later. At the moment, I wanted to hear the rest of his story. I also needed reassurance that he was really here, so I leaned forward and gently grazed the back of his hand with my fingers. The simple contact of his skin with mine sent small shivers of pleasure down my back.

Edward looked down at our hands and smiled but did not comment on the contact. I wondered if he liked my touch as much as I liked his.

"Three of my friends from the Volturi found me two months later in a rain forest somewhere in Brazil. Demetri is a tracker, which is how they were able to find me despite my attempts to hide. Alec and Jane came with him to try to convince me to come back. They are twins and two of the very few vampires I allowed myself to become close to, besides Esme. Jane was the one who convinced me to return."

"How did she do that?" I tried my best to suppress the surge of jealousy that flashed through me.

"Jane and Alec had a rough life as humans. They had seen the ugly side of life long before they were changed. Jane suggested that if I hunted the lowlifes of the human world, I would not feel as guilty about taking lives."

There was a certain note to his voice when he spoke Jane's name, and I had to look away from his face for a moment. _Jane is not here,_ I reminded myself. _There is no need to be jealous._

"I took Jane's offer and returned to Italy. For the following six years, I did as she offered. I avoided the castle during meal times and traveled to the neighboring countries to feed. It was easy to track my prey, but after a while, I could no longer distinct between them and myself. I was no better than they were, and their vile thoughts were as much of a torture as the guilt I was feeling. Aro saw me deteriorate, and he tried to pull me out of my depression by offering me a place next to him, as a fourth leader."

I knew that Edward did not accept the offer, as he was clearly not in Italy at the moment, but I wondered what lead him here.

"It would have been a tempting offer...for anyone else but me." Edward's eyes were sad again, and I felt the answering ache inside me. I did not like seeing him sad. "I refused, but Aro is not one to take no for an answer. He told me to think about it and come back with an answer later. I began contemplating suicide again when Esme suddenly contacted me. She took me in and showed me a different way to exist, a way that did not include the guilt of taking a life to sustain my own. Two years ago, I left the Volturi and joined Esme. But Esme did not just save my life." Edward smiled and looked me in my eyes. "Thanks to her, I found you." He brought his cold hand to my cheek, very gently cupping my face in his large palm.

"I'm glad she saved you," I whispered.

"I don't deserve you, Bella. I know that." His smile was gone. "I almost killed you the first time I caught your scent." He hung his head and dropped his hand from my face.

I looked at him with a puzzled expression. How could have I missed that? I searched my memory from yesterday and could not find a single hint to suggest that he had contemplated ending my life.

"There is another confession I must make, one that might make you throw me out of your bedroom. Honestly, you have every right to do that."

"What do you mean?" I frowned, not liking the way this was going, not at all.

"I arrived to Forks three weeks ago. I had a warning, but I needed to see for myself."

"A warning?" His cryptic remarks were beginning to drive me crazy.

"Yes, a...friend told me that your blood will be the sweetest scent that I would ever sense, that your scent will drive me to insanity, and that I would kill you if I had the chance. I did not believe that, so I came to see you. I stood outside your bedroom window, and for the first time since my newborn year, I felt the monster within me roar. I wanted to kill you that night." Edward's expression hardened, and for the first time since meeting him, I felt myself becoming afraid of him.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. My heart was racing and my breathing became faster. I stared at him, wide-eyed. "But you didn't," I whispered.

"No. It was the hardest thing I have ever done, but I remained outside your house that night." The fierce expression disappeared from his face, and my panic was subsiding. "I forced myself to breathe your scent, to learn its every aspect, and to resist its pull. Your silent mind sparked my curiosity, and I focused on it to cage my inner demon."

"Is it still very difficult for you?" I asked, still whispering, but at least the fear and panic disappeared.

"It is not easy, but it's not as difficult as it was that first time."

"How?" I breathed.

He lowered his gaze again. "I desensitized myself to your scent. I watched you from the tree across your window every night for the past weeks, breathing in your scent. Once every few days, I would sneak into your house and take something with your scent on it, so I would not be away from it for too long."

I was shocked. How could I have missed being watched? How could I not notice the items disappearing? And then I had another question, one that disgusted me to the core, what items exactly _did_ he take? "What kind of _items_?" I asked through gritted teeth.

"Usually, a shirt that you wore that day. Sometime it was a sock or a scarf," he replied, looking me in the eye. "I would have said I'm sorry, but I'm not. It helped me to be around you and not want to kill you all the time. I know that I was intruding on your privacy, but it was necessary."

I was still feeling nauseous. He's been watching me for _three weeks! Every night_ _for three weeks_! I closed my eyes, trying to push back the bile that rose to my mouth. _At least he did not take your underwear,_ a sarcastic voice reminded me inside my head. _At least he is not THAT kind of a pervert._

I needed to think, and I could not do it with him in my room. I needed to process everything. It did not escape my notice that I had no problem with him telling me that he had had sex with numerous partners or that he killed what was probably hundreds of people, but the moment he said that he invaded my house, my _bedroom_ , I felt sick to my stomach. I was being selfish, I knew, but at that moment, I did not care.

"Get out," I whispered. "Get out!" I repeated firmly, looking him in the eyes.

* * *

**Don't be mad at Bella, she had a lot of information to deal with, along with her own feelings, which are currently in a bit of disarray.**

**Thank you for reading,  
**

**Alley Cat.**


	20. Flashbacks

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Edward**

"Get out," Bella whispered. It was so low that I was not sure she realized that she said it out loud. "Get out!" she repeated, and this time it was louder and firmer. She looked me right in the eye, and I saw the beautiful brown orbs darken with rage. She meant it. She wanted me out of her room, out of her house, out of her life.

I stood up and moved to the window. The pain in my chest was almost incapacitating. I paused in front of the window and looked at her again.

"I _am_ sorry for hurting you, Bella. It was never my intention; on the contrary, I was trying to protect you from myself. That is the reason I did what I did. I hope that one day you will find it in your heart to forgive me."

I waited for several seconds more, hoping that she would say something, give me something to hope for.

Bella said nothing.

I turned to the window and jumped out. Tonight, I would not be watching her from the tree across her window.

I did not return to the Cullen house; I just kept running. I finally stopped when I reached the Canadian border. I tried to remind myself that I knew this was a possibility. I knew that I was taking a risk by telling Bella everything, but I did not want to lie to her, and I did not want to hide anything from her anymore.

 _I can't believe I lost her_. The thought brought a new wave of pain.

I climbed one of the trees and settled between the high branches. I repeated the night's events in my head over and over again, trying to see if there was anything I could have said or done differently. Each time I came to the conclusion that it really did not matter.

I took comfort in the fact that Bella was not fazed by my story. She was only hurt because of my actions toward her, and I could not regret them. I might not have needed to do that for as long as I had, but I could not avoid it completely. I could only hope that she would be able to see it.

 _I can't believe I have lost her,_ I thought again. I wanted to tear the entire forest apart, to let my frustration out, but I could not find the will to move. I felt as though I was back in Volterra, depressed and completely alone.

I was startled to hear someone speak to me from the neighboring tree. "You did not lose her, you idiot, but keep going like this, and you will."

I stared at the figure in front of me. I recognized her from Carlisle and Esme's thoughts as well as from Alice's visions. I noticed that I could not sense her at all, just like Carlisle and Esme couldn't when they saw her. I could not hear her thoughts and could not smell her scent. Had I closed my eyes, I would have believed I was alone here.

"Hello Rosalie," I said.

"Hello Edward," she replied. "Sulking as usual?" She raised a brow at me.

I ignored her question. "What do you want?"

"I want a lot of things," she said. Her eyes were completely black. It was not like the eyes of a thirsty vampire, but like two dark almonds filled with the darkest shade of black. "I want my family back, and I want my husband by my side. Unfortunately, all I have is you."

"I have no interest in having _you_ ," I responded sharply.

"Don't worry, I don't want you like _that_ either." Rosalie laughed. It was a dark laughter that made the hair rise on the back of my neck.

"Good. Now get lost."

"Oh, no, not so soon, Eddie."

"Don't call me that," I roared. She was getting on my nerves. I didn't care what she was; if she didn't get the hell away from here, I would _make_ her.

"You never did have a sense of humor." She sighed.

"My sense of humor, or the lack of, is none of your business."

"Oh, but this is where you're wrong, Eddie-boy."

I growled at her.

"Everything you do is my business. Because you see, _Edward_ , I want my life back, and the only one who can give it back to me is you."

"Me?" I stared at her. _Is she crazy?_

"Yes, you," Rosalie said coldly. "It seems like a good night for stories, so let me tell you one."

"If it gets you away from here, fine." I huffed.

Rosalie shook her head. "I should have remembered that you were a spoiled brat," she murmured.

Before I could respond to her insult, I was suddenly transported from sitting on the tree branch to standing in the middle of a forest. I recognized the place instantly; it was the forest outside of Bella's house, and it was daylight.

"What's going on here?" I hissed.

"I'm taking you on a small trip. Don't worry, I will get you back soon. You need to see this first." Rosalie pointed at something behind me.

I turned and froze in shock.

It was Bella and I, standing in the middle of the forest. "How is that possible?" I breathed, only half-aware that I had said the words out loud.

"Listen," she ordered.

I watched the couple. They were standing no more than three feet away from us but seemed unaware that they were being watched.

I saw Edward take a deep breath. _"Bella, we're leaving."_

Bella took a deep breath too. _"Why now? Another year—,"_

_"Bella, it's time. How much longer could we stay in Forks, after all? Carlisle can barely pass for thirty, and he's claiming thirty-three now. We'd have to start over soon, regardless."_

Bella looked confused. She stared at him, seeming unable to understand the meaning behind his words.

Edward stared back coldly.

 _"When you say we—,"_ Bella whispered.

 _"I mean my family and myself."_ Each word was separate and distinct.

I felt sick myself as I watched Bella shaking her head back and forth, mechanically, as though trying to clear it and this other Edward looking at her coldly.

 _"Okay,"_ Bella said. _"I'll come with you."_

_"You can't, Bella. Where we're going…It's not the right place for you."_

_"Where you are is the right place for me."_

_"I'm no good for you, Bella."_

_"Don't be ridiculous."_ She sounded as if she was begging. _"You're the very best part of my life."_

 _"My world is not for you,"_ Edward said grimly.

_"What happened with Jasper—that was nothing, Edward! Nothing!"_

_"You're right,"_ Edward agreed _. "It was exactly what was to be expected."_

_"You promised! In Phoenix, you promised that you would stay—"_

_"As long as that was best for you,"_ Edward interrupted her mid-sentence.

"Phoenix?" I glanced at Rosalie. "What happened there?"

"Shh, listen. I will explain later," she ordered.

I turned my attention back to the scene in front of me.

Bella was shouting, furiously. _"Carlisle told me about that, and I don't care, Edward. I don't care! You can have my soul. I don't want it without you—it's yours already!"_

Edward took a deep breath and stared, unseeingly, at the ground for a long moment. His mouth twisted the tiniest bit. When he finally looked up, his eyes were different, harder.

 _"Bella, I don't want you to come with me."_ Edward spoke the words slowly and precisely.

There was a pause and neither one of them spoke. After a few moments I listened as Bella whispered, choking on the words, _"You…don't…want me?"_

_"No."_

Bella stared, uncomprehending. Edward stared back without apology.

 _"Well, that changes things,"_ Bella said, her voice surprisingly calm.

Edward looked away into the trees as he spoke again. _"Of course, I'll always love you…in a way. But what happened the other night made me realize that it's time for a change. Because I'm…tired of pretending to be something I'm not, Bella. I am not human."_ He looked back at her. _"I've let this go on much too long, and I'm sorry for that."_

 _"Don't."_ Bella's voice was barely a whisper now. _"Don't do this."_

I felt the rage inside me boil. _How could this Edward do that to Bella? How could he not see how much he was hurting her, shattering her?_

 _"You're not good for me, Bella,"_ Edward said.

Bella opened her mouth to say something, and then closed it again. She took another breath before trying again. Her voice came out barely above whisper. _"If…that's what you want."_

Edward nodded once. _"I would like to ask one favor, though, if that's not too much,"_ he said.

 _What could he possibly dare to ask?_ I thought, furious. _He did not deserve anything from her!_

 _"Anything,"_ Bella vowed, her voice faintly stronger.

Edward's frozen eyes suddenly melted and he was staring at her with almost overwhelming intensity. _"Don't do anything reckless or stupid,"_ he ordered, no longer detached. _"Do you understand what I'm saying?"_

Bella nodded helplessly.

I wanted to punch him.

Edward's eyes cooled again. _"I'm thinking of Charlie, of course. He needs you. Take care of yourself—for him."_

Bella nodded again. _"I will,"_ she whispered.

 _"And I'll make you a promise in return,"_ he said. _"I promise that this will be the last time you'll see me. I won't come back. I won't put you through anything like this again. You can go on with your life without any more interference from me. It will be as if I'd never existed."_

 _What kind of a stupid promise is that? As if a human could ever forget meeting one of us._ Every word that came out of his mouth only fueled my anger.

Bella's knees began to shake; her ears went red with the pounding of blood.

Edward smiled at her, seemingly gentle. _"Don't worry. You're human–your memory is no more than a sieve. Time heals all wounds for your kind."_

 _"And your memories?"_ Bella asked, sounding as though she was choking.

 _"Well,"_ he hesitated for a short second, _"I won't forget. But my kind…we're very easily distracted."_

I could no longer hold myself. I launched at him, but it was only to land on the other side, passing right through him.

"It is only a memory, Edward. We are not really here." Rosalie's voice was different, kinder. I returned my attention to the couple once again, clenching my fists at my sides.

Edward took a step away from Bella. _"That's everything, I suppose. We won't bother you again."_

 _"Alice isn't coming back,"_ Bella spoke as though she just realized that fact.

Edward shook his head slowly, never lifting his gaze off Bella. _"No. They're all gone. I stayed behind to tell you goodbye."_

 _"Alice is gone?"_ Bella's voice was blank with disbelief.

 _"She wanted to say goodbye, but I convinced her that a clean break would be better for you."_ There was a pause and then Edward spoke again. _"Goodbye, Bella,"_ he said in the same quiet, peaceful voice.

 _"Wait!"_ Bella choked the word out, reaching out for him. He locked his hands around her wrists and pinned them to her sides. He leaned down and pressed his lips very lightly to her forehead for the briefest instant. Bella's eyes closed.

 _"Take care of yourself,"_ he breathed. The next moment he was gone, darting into the trees, too fast for Bella's human eyes to be able to follow.

I watched with horror as Bella began trying to follow him. Her legs were shaking, and her face was the palest shade of white possible without being an immortal.

"She walked the woods for hours before she was found and returned to her home," Rosalie said, and I was once again transported from where we stood to another location. This time we were standing on a cliff overlooking the sea. "She became a zombie-like creature after that. For three and a half months, Bella hardly spoke to anyone, barely slept because of constant nightmares, and lost almost all contact with the outside world. Five months after that, she became friends with a young werewolf who helped her come out of her shell a little bit." Rosalie spoke slowly, watching the sea beneath us.

I briefly glanced around us. There was no one around on this clouded afternoon.

"But even finding a friend did not help. Seven months after that day you had just witnessed, Bella came here."

I could hear her as she approached the cliff from between the heavy vegetation.

"What is she doing?" I asked Rosalie, beginning to panic.

"Watch." Rosalie's voice was harsh again.

Fear, panic, and pure horror engulfed me as I saw Bella approaching the edge of the cliff and stare at the gray water below. She smiled briefly, and I prayed that she would not jump. She took another step forward, setting herself on the very edge, and stared into the space in front of her.

She rolled up on the balls of her feet, smiled, and raised her arms straight out, as if she was going to dive. She lifted her face, and I suddenly noticed that it was raining.

Bella leaned forward, crouching slightly, and flung herself off the cliff.

"Bella, no!" I shouted after her.

"She can't hear you," Rosalie reminded me again.

I felt so helpless as I watched the girl I loved fall into the water and saw her tiny frame swallowed by the waves. "Can't you do something?" I asked in a broken voice.

"No. I'm sorry." Her voice held sincere apology and a trace of hurt.

_Maybe this is as hard for her as it is for me._

"Her friend, the werewolf, tried to save her from the waters," Rosalie said, pointing at the shore where I saw someone who resembled Jacob Black pulling Bella's body from the water. "He tried everything he could, but she was dead before he reached her." I saw Jacob's body shake and heard his anguished cry as he realized that the girl he held was truly dead.

"There is one more place I will take you," Rosalie said, and I saw the reality shift once again.

"I know this place," I said, surprised to find myself in the throne room inside the Volturi castle.

"Yes, you do. Now watch," Rosalie ordered.

I saw the other Edward walking through the heavy wooden doors toward the three brothers sitting on the thrones. He looked horrible, as if he had not fed for over a month. His clothes were tattered, and the expression on his face mirrored the devastated look on Bella's in the first memory I was shown.

" _So, you have made up your minds,"_ Edward said.

" _I'm afraid your particular gifts are too valuable to destroy,_ " Aro replied. _"But if you're unhappy with your lot, join us. We would be delighted to utilize your skills. Won't you consider staying with us?"_

" _You know it will happen anyway,"_ Edward said, his face contorted in a bitter expression.

" _Not without cause,"_ Marcus stated firmly.

Edward turned around and began walking out. When he was gone from the room, Aro spoke again, his tone accepting. _"Such a waste."_

"He was asking them to end him, wasn't he?" I asked Rosalie. I did not need to ask why. If this Edward loved Bella as much as I did now, he could not have tolerated an existence without her.

"Yes," Rosalie said firmly. "There was just one thing he did not take into consideration…"

"What was it?"

"Family." Rosalie gestured at the room again, and I turned to see Alice, Jasper, Emmett, and Edward on their knees in front of the three thrones. Their eyes were empty, and when I saw Alec staring at them with great concentration, I understood why. Even though they were incapacitated by Alec's gift, each was held by a member of the guard.

" _Alec, allow them to hear,"_ Aro instructed.

Alec nodded.

" _Edward Cullen, for the multiple crimes of exposure to the human world, you are sentenced to death."_ Aro nodded to Demetri—who held Edward—and in an instant, Demetri tore the vampire in front of him to pieces.

I felt as though I was watching a nightmare. _This couldn't be real._

" _Emmett Cullen, Alice Cullen, and Jasper Hale, for the crimes of exposure and conspiracy to commit treason against the Volturi, you are sentenced to death."_ Aro nodded to the three other members of the guard, and the room was once again filled with the shrieking sound of metal being torn apart.

" _Burn them outside,"_ Caius ordered.

The guards quickly disposed of the torn vampires and left the room. Aro sat back on the throne and took out his cell phone. He dialed a number and waited for the other side to pick up.

" _Hello, Aro. What can I do for you?"_ I heard the voice of Carlisle coming from the phone. He sounded worried.

" _I'm sorry I have to be the bearer of bad news, my brother."_ Aro did not sound sorry in the least; in fact, he appeared all too happy to be making this call.

" _What kind of bad news?"_

" _Well, I have received a visit from your children today, and I'm afraid that visit did not go well."_ Aro spoke slowly, as if savoring every moment.

I wanted to tear his body apart and burn it myself.

" _I am sorry to hear that."_ Carlisle's tone was calm, but there was an undertone to it that was clearly anxious.

" _I have learned some interesting information from your children, regarding a human girl named Bella."_

" _Bella is no longer alive."_ Carlisle's tone was curt and pained.

" _I know,"_ Aro stated firmly. _"That is the only reason why you will not be receiving the same sentence at the rest of your children."_

" _Sentence?"_ Carlisle was more than worried now; he sounded devastated.

" _Yes, that is the reason I am calling. I'm sorry to inform you that Edward, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper were sentenced to death for their crimes."_

" _No!"_ I heard Esme begin to sob in the background.

" _You will be comforted to know that they did not suffer more than they had to. I allowed Alec to use his gift."_

Aro made it sound as though it was something Carlisle should be grateful for. In a way, it was the truth, and I hated it. The Volturi rarely allowed such painless death to those who were accused of treason.

" _Thank you for calling me, Aro,"_ Carlisle said. I was certain he was doing everything within his power to remain calm and not let Aro hear how much pain the loss had caused him.

" _You are welcome, my brother. But I must insist that such an event must not repeat itself. I might not be able to convince my brothers to spare your life a second time."_

" _I understand. Goodbye."_

" _Goodbye."_ Aro ended the call with a smile on his face.

"Sadistic son of a bitch!" I shouted, despite knowing that he could not hear me. "I will burn your ass one piece at a time, leaving your head for last so you can watch your own death."

Just as I finished my words, the scenery changed, and I was once again perched on the branch in the forest just next to the Canadian border.

"What was that?" I demanded of Rosalie, enraged. "Who are you?"

"You know who I am," Rosalie answered calmly. "And what you saw are flashbacks of sorts, only they did not come from memory, but rather they are part of a different timeline."

_Different timeline? What kind of crap is that?_

"I must leave now. I have been here for more than two hours already, and my presence in your world will not go unnoticed for much longer." Rosalie's image began to fade.

"Leave? My world? Presence?" _Jesus, I sound like a fucking broken record._ "Answer me, goddamn it!"

"Goodbye, Edward. Think about everything you've seen tonight," Rosalie said as she disappeared into thin air, leaving me, once again, alone with my thoughts.

w.W.w

**Bella**

I stared at the open window through which Edward just left. There was a strange ache in my chest that felt as though there was a hole there, trying to tear itself open in the middle of my body.

I had a strange mixture of emotions floating around inside me. I was angry and hurt by Edward's lack of respect for my privacy, and I was still slightly disgusted to picture him sneaking into my house and stealing my shirts or my socks. _At least it was not your underwear!_ I reminded myself, but I still felt uneasy.

I also felt sad for him. He had been through so much. I could only imagine what he must have seen during his life, especially during the times when he had to feed off of murderers and rapists—the lowest of the low of the human kind.

Sitting alone in my bedroom, I had to admit that I was also jealous of all the faceless women who had known him in the biblical sense. _I wonder if Jane is one of those women…_

"That's not the point!" I said aloud, thinking that maybe hearing it rather than thinking it would help me believe it.

But it _was_ the point. As uneasy as I felt knowing that I had been stalked by a vampire for the past month, jealousy was the stronger of the emotions within me.

 _Besides, it's better than the alternative. He could have killed you instead of stalking you for a while,_ my inner voice argued.

_Yeah, being stalked definitely beats being dead._

I laughed at my own logic.

_And he did say he was sorry that he hurt you. He was trying to protect you._

I frowned. My inner voice was sounding way too logical to me.

I _wanted_ to be angry. I had _every right_ to be angry. But where did being angry leave me? Alone.

I did not mind being alone. After all, I was alone for the better part of my life. Even while living with Renée, I was alone most of the time. She was always at work or taking some kind of evening class or just hanging out. Even when she married Phil, I preferred to stay behind while they went out, or I would stay out myself in order to give them some privacy.

Right now wasn't much different. Charlie was not around for most of the day; his shifts were long and he was often out of the house even before I woke up, so why did I mind being alone all of a sudden?

_Because it's a different kind of alone._

_So what am I supposed to do now?_ I asked myself.

The answer was formed even before I finished the question in my thoughts. _Forgive him._

He was so gentle with me today, so caring. _He saved your life. That has to count for something._

I laughed at myself again. _Yeah, that counts for a lot._

 _I will have to talk to him tomorrow,_ I decided as I turned off the lamp on the nightstand. I slid further down under the covers, keeping my ankle on the pillow Edward brought earlier, and let sleep take over.

w.W.w

I felt as though I had only just closed my eyes when my alarm went off in the morning. I was tired and a little sore, and when I moved to take the covers off, my ankle ached in protest.

My morning routine took twice as long as usual, and I was running late by the time I exited the house. When I turned to look at the driveway, I saw a familiar car parked behind my truck and a very familiar figure leaning on it.

Edward.

I stared at him from my porch. "What are you doing here?"

He came closer slowly. Each step was hesitant, as if he was approaching a scared rabbit that might run at the first sudden movement.

"I thought I could offer you a ride to school." He spoke softly. "I did not know if you would be comfortable driving with a sprained ankle." He stood at the bottom of the stairs, allowing me the space.

"Oh." My mind was too busy admiring his face and the faint smile on his lips for me to be able to form a complete sentence. Or any sentence, for that matter.

He stared back at me, his smile fading as the silence continued. "I see," he said quietly and lowered his gaze. He was about to turn when I realized that he took my lack of answer as a refusal.

"Edward, wait," I called after him. "I would love to go with you," I said quickly. "I didn't even think about how hard it would be to drive with my ankle in its current state." I had to take a deep breath. There were things I needed him to understand before we continued this…whatever this was that was going on between us. So I gathered every bit of strength that I had in me and looked him staring in the eyes, hoping to convey the seriousness of my next words with my gaze. "I want you to know that I'm not sorry for my reaction last night."

"I do not expect you to be," he answered.

"I spent a lot of time thinking after you left. And while I realize that you did everything because you were acting out of concern for my safety, I will not tolerate it any longer." I knew there wasn't much I could do to stop a vampire from doing something that he wanted to, but I felt that I knew Edward well enough to believe that he would respect my wishes. He was genuinely sorry for what he had done. "No more stalking."

"No more stalking," he agreed with a hint of smile in his eyes. He stepped forward slowly until he was standing right in front of me. "Thank you, Bella," he breathed and cupped my cheek gently. The sudden combination of his scent and his touch scattered every thought I had, and I found myself simply staring at the beautiful golden eyes in front of me, getting lost in their depths. "I promise that I will prove myself worthy of your trust." He spoke softly, looking deep into my eyes.

I believed him.

"May I carry you to the car?" he asked with a brilliant smile.

I blushed under the force of his smile and nodded. I could not speak for the life of me.

Edward picked me up as if I weighed no more than a feather and carried me to the car much in the same manner as yesterday.

"But I'm afraid I can't let you carry me around school; it might look just a little too odd," I teased him.

"Too bad, I like having you in my arms." He flashed another smile and winked at me.

I laughed. It felt good to be so casual with him.

His eyes were bright and happy as he sat me down in the passenger seat and closed the door. I followed him with my eyes as he walked around to the driver side and got in.

"I guess I would have to settle for holding you around the waist and having you lean on me for support all day," he said with a mischievous grin.

"I can live with that." I giggled. _Since when do I giggle?_

Edward started the car, and we were on our way. He drove much faster than I would have, breaking the speed limit as soon as he was out of my driveway, but thanks to his mad driving skills, I made it to school with time to spare.

w.W.w

Edward walked with me to each class, and I sat with him and the rest of his family during lunch. Mike frowned at me, but Jessica looked very excited. Angela smiled softly at me, and I knew she was happy for me. The school was buzzing with gossip, though. Ever since I stepped out of Edward's car this morning, everyone was curious to know what was going on between us. It was easy to ignore the questioning stares, and no one dared to approach and ask bluntly.

Truthfully, I did not know how to answer them myself. What _were_ we? Friends? I was hoping that we were more than that. Were we a couple? I didn't think we were there just yet. _But you're hoping to get there,_ my inner voice reminded me smugly.

"So, Edward, what are we going to do about that girl?" Emmett asked, bringing me out of my musings.

"What girl?" I asked, puzzled. _Was Emmett referring to me?_

"Lauren," Edward answered. "And I haven't decided yet."

"Why would you have to do something to her?" I asked, still not understanding.

"Well, she tripped you on purpose. She deserves punishment." Emmett shrugged as if it was obvious.

I blanched. _Punishment?_ My imagination kicked into overdrive, and I began imagining gruesome scenarios one after the other.

"Relax, Bella." Jasper soothed the feeling of anxiety that was rising within me. "We're not going to kill her."

I looked at Edward for confirmation.

"We are not going to harm her physically," Edward said calmly, placing his hand on my back and rubbing it in soothing circles. It felt really nice, and my body relaxed instantly. "But I _am_ going to make sure she thinks twice before messing around with any of us again."

"I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt me…" I said in a week voice.

"She did not intend to _kill_ you, but she had every intention of hurting you." Edward's eyes went dark, and a shiver ran down my spine.

_I would never want to be on the receiving end of that glare._

Edward's eyes softened immediately, and he smiled gently at me. "I will not let her or anyone else hurt you, ever. I promise you that."

And just like that, everyone disappeared and there was only Edward. I drowned in his eyes. The golden hue in them began to darken again, but it wasn't the scary gaze from a moment ago; it had a different feel to it. _Could it be lust?_ I barely dared to hope. Very slowly, his eyes grew nearer as his entire body began to lean toward me.

The shrilling sound of the bell woke me from my Edward-induced haze. I jumped to my feet, the world around me suddenly getting in focus again. I blushed when I saw the knowing smiles on the faces of Jasper, Alice, and Emmett as they stood up, taking their trays away. Emmett winked at me and gave a stare in Edward's direction. I did not dare to look at him to see his reaction. I was too embarrassed. _You've only known him two days, Bella!_

I reached for my tray but a cold hand on my shoulder stopped me before I reached it. His other hand lifted my chin gently and our eyes met again. His were still smoldering with emotions I could not name.

"We have to get to class now, but we _will_ finish this later," he said very quietly, his scent intoxicating me. "Now let's get to class."

* * *

**The recognizable quotes are from "New Moon", pages 68-73.**

**I hope the flashbacks were not too confusing, if there is something that you did not understand feel free to PM me.**

**Thank you for reading! Please take a moment and let me know what you think.**

**Alley Cat.**


	21. The Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Carlisle**

Denise was manning the front desk when I arrived for my night shift at the hospital. It had been less than a month since my family grew from three members to six, and I could not have been happier.

Esme and Alice did a wonderful job on the house, making it into a beautiful home that I could not wait to come back to at the end of each shift. _The fact that there is a certain vampire waiting for you at home could also have something to do with your newfound happiness,_ a small voice in the back of my mind reminded me.

It was true, and I did not want or bother to deny it.

Esme had brought so much joy to my dull and lonely existence. I could hardly remember my life before her, despite my vampiric memory.

I was also very happy to see that the three young men getting along. Jasper and Edward shared similar views on life, due to their military backgrounds, and Emmett was impossible to dislike; his high spirits and kind heart made him irresistible.

My house was finally filled with true laughter and chatter instead of the ghosts that had haunted it for the past year.

However, we were unable to find more information about Rosalie or the source of her information. She knew things that were impossible for any outsider to know, information from personal thoughts and private conversations that were not conducted with her in the vicinity.

Another oddity that had yet to be solved was the new nature of the flashes of images that I was seeing. Although unlike the previous flashes, these were enjoyable, but they were still odd. They felt as though they were memories that had yet to occur. These images of Esme and me in various locations and situations, some of them extremely intimate, would flash before my eyes whenever I looked at her or thought of her. Until I could make them come true—and I had every intention of doing so—they would have to suffice.

As the shifts were quiet during this past week, I had plenty of time to let my mind drift, either to the flashes of images or to my own imagination. I was preparing myself for yet another Esme-filled shift when I approached Denise.

"Good evening, Denise." I smiled at her.

"Good evening, Dr. Cullen" She returned my smile and handed me several files. "We are short on staff today," she informed me. "Dr. Gerandy called in sick, and Dr. Randall slipped and broke her arm this morning."

A glance at the board behind her told me that this left only two doctors on shift today, Dr. Elliot and me. It also showed we had only two residents and four nurses. "I see that we are also two nurses short today."

"Yes, both Nurse Brown and Nurse Steel called in sick." Denise rolled her eyes, showing that she did not believe either one was actually ill. I heard her mutter under her breath, "Probably decided to stay in bed rather than show up for work." I had to hide a smile as her words were supposed to be too low for a human to hear.

"I understand. Well then, I'll go and start my evening rounds, and I'll take over Dr. Randall's patients as well. Did Dr. Elliot arrive yet?"

"No, she called just before you came in. She's having car problems and is running late, but she said that she will be here in twenty minutes."

"All Right. When she comes in tell her to take over Dr. Gerandy's patients."

"I will, Dr. Cullen."

"Thank you, Denise. I'll see you later," I said and walked away toward my first patient of the day.

Dr. Elliot arrived forty minutes later as I was finishing with Dr. Randall's patients. I met her in the staff kitchen, and she told me that her car battery died right when she was about to leave for the hospital and that it took ages before the tow truck arrived. When I informed her that we were short of staff on today's shift, she said, "I just hope we have a quiet shift today."

Two hours into the shift, it was becoming obvious that tonight's shift would be anything but quiet.

One of the patients that were brought in was a drunken male that the police had arrested early that morning. He was involved in a fight and ended up with several cuts that needed stitches. I sent one of the residents to stitch the man up while the officer—Deputy Mark—stood guard over him.

I was in the hallway on my way back to my office when I heard a commotion coming from one of the examining rooms.

"Put the gun down, Frank," Mark, the deputy, said in a commanding tone.

_How on earth did he get a gun?_ I wondered, shocked. _This can't be_ good, I thought as I quickly slipped into the neighboring room and picked up a syringe with a sedative. _Guns and people do not mix well_. The man's heartbeat was very quick, and I could smell the adrenaline rising in his blood.

As I approached the room, I noticed that the man, Frank, as Deputy Mark had called him, was standing with his back to the entrance. With a quick movement—as quickly as I could allow myself while keeping in mind the humans around me—I stepped close to the man and stuck the sedative in his arm. He was out before his mind could register what had happened, and his body slumped into my arms.

However, the drama did not end there. As the man went slack, he dropped the gun he was holding, and it went off, hitting the deputy in his foot. The sound of a gunshot brought several members of the staff into the room. Deputy Mark was taken to the operating room. The drunken man was strapped to a gurney, and the resident—Dr. Williams—was so shaken that he had to be sent home.

Thankfully, the bullet did not hit any major arteries, so Mark was slated for a full recovery. I stitched the drunken man while he was unconscious, and when he woke up, he was taken to the police station with no further incidents. I had high hopes that Dr. Williams would be fine by the next day for his shift.

w.W.w

I was standing behind the front desk, passing on my instructions regarding one of my patients to Denise when the second fiasco of the night began. A woman stormed in through the ER door, looking disheveled and shouting.

"We are all going to die! The devil is upon us!" She was waving her hands as she shouted. Luckily, there weren't that many patients occupying the ER at that moment, and the few that were there were staring at the woman, wide-eyed.

I approached the woman slowly, and she turned her gaze on me—her eyes were almost black in color and bloodshot, indicating that she had not slept in a long while—and started screeching, "You are a demon! You were sent forth by the devil to bring the Armageddon!"

"What is your name, ma'am?" I asked in a calm tone.

She thrust herself against the wall, her eyes went wide with what seemed like panic, and she started hugging herself. "Don't come any closer, you fiend!"

I stopped and saw the security guard looking at me for directions. I lifted my hand to tell him to hold and kept my eyes on the scared woman. "I am not going to hurt you, I promise. Can you please tell me your name?" I kept my tone very calm and my eyes locked on hers.

"Never!" she shouted, whilst trying to dig herself into the wall behind her.

"Do you have any family here? Are you visiting someone here in the hospital?" I asked, trying to calm the woman down.

It didn't work; instead, she began mumbling quotes from the Bible. "Lying lips are abomination to the Lord. Keep thy tongue from evil and thy lips from speaking guile. Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it."

She looked as though she was going into some kind of a trance. She kept repeating those same quotes over and over again. I saw Denise slipping into an exam room and coming back with a syringe of sedative. "Denise, wait. Let's try giving her a glass of water first. She may have taken something, and I do not want to risk overdosing her accidentally."

"Okay, Dr. Cullen."

"Ma'am?" I tried getting the woman's attention once more, but her eyes were glazed over—a sight that reminded me somewhat of Alice when she was having a vision—and she did not respond beyond reciting those same verses over and again.

Denise came back with a glass of water and came to the mumbling woman. "Ma'am, here, drink this. It will help you calm down."

The woman's eyes seemed to focus, and I saw fear appearing in them as she watched me.

I took a step back— _maybe she is afraid of men?_ —and said, "I will not approach you, I promise. Please, let the nurse take care of you."

There was a small nod from the woman, and the mumbling seemed to quiet down somewhat.

I nodded to Denise, and she stepped to the woman, handing her the water. The woman drank eagerly, as though she had not been able to drink in quite a while, but she never took her eyes off me.

She appeared to be of Native American origin. Her skin was russet in color, and her hair was long and black; it was probably straight when it was clean, but at the moment, it was a mass of knots with leaves and twigs intertwined in it.

"Denise, escort her to one of the exam rooms. I'll send Dr. Smith to check up on her." I instructed. Seeing that a female nurse was able to get close to the woman, I thought a female doctor would be a good bet, even if she were only a resident.

Denise nodded and turned to the woman. "Please, come with me. Let me take you to a room where you can sit."

I saw the fear spike in the woman's eyes, and the muttering of Bible verses re-started. "I will not follow you there, ma'am. Dr. Miranda Smith will come and check on you."

The woman did not move. I decided that the best way to get her to the exam room was to distance myself from her. I wondered if the woman might be a Quileute or a relative of one. _The first priority is to get her to calm down. Maybe then, she would tell us everything herself._

"I will be in my office, Denise," I said calmly and turned to the hallway. I exited the ER and listened to Denise leading the woman to the exam room. The woman was still muttering under her breath, but she seemed to be cooperating for the time being. _Poor thing._

I sent Dr. Smith to the woman, explaining to her about what had happened in the ER when she came in and instructing her to report to me if any progress was made—whether by herself or through Denise.

w.W.w

As soon as Dr. Smith left to examine the Bible Woman—as she came to be called among the staff for her Bible quotes—I was called to the ER once again. A woman came in with her husband. The two were tourists visiting the man's family in Forks, and in the middle of the night, the woman's water broke.

_At least neither one of them is drunk or screaming_ , I thought as I prepped for the delivery.

Another woman in labor arrived at the hospital just as I walked into the delivery room, stretching our small staff to its limit.

The Bible Woman was now sleeping. Denise was able to find a phone number of the woman's nephew among her possessions and called him to come and pick her up. Dr. Smith was now assisting me with the deliveries, along with three of the nurses, and Denise was once again manning the front desk and sorting through the arrivals. Fortunately, there were no major trauma cases coming in this early in the morning, so I was able to focus on the two babies waiting to be born.

Both deliveries were hard. The first couple had a little girl who was almost four weeks premature, and the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck, which complicated matters even further. The second couple had a boy who was on time but a bit on the heavy side, and his mother was of a petite figure. I wanted to slap the woman's OBGYN for not scheduling her for a C-section; the woman's pelvis was too narrow to allow for a natural birth, and when she went into labor, it caused unnecessary pain and stress to both her and her baby.

Finally, with only six minutes between them, both babies were out and breathing on their own. The boy was born at 3:15 am, 22" tall and weighing 9 lbs., 2 oz. The girl was born at 3:21 am, 19" tall and weighing 6 lbs., 6 oz.

I was pleased to see that both babies were healthy despite having a very eventful birth and let out a sigh of relief when I signed on their charts. I smiled when I saw that both couples, although not related, had the same last name—Johnson.

The women were taken to recovery, and the nurses took the babies to their fathers—who were waiting outside the delivery room. The girl's father fainted during delivery and was taken outside to breathe some fresh air, and the boy's father was taken outside when it was determined that we had to operate on his wife.

I was washing my hands, pleased with the results, when all hell broke loose in the waiting room. I almost flew outside to see what was wrong.

Dr. Smith's face was one of pure shock. Mr. Johnson was standing in front of her, shouting that he was going to sue the hospital, the doctor, the resident, and everyone who was in the delivery room. The other Mr. Johnson was being held by a security guard and screaming something along the same lines. Only difference was that his screams also included threats against the security guard.

Nurse Garcia was trying to reason with the screaming Mr. Johnson. The security guard was trying his best to stop the other Mr. Johnson from attacking either the nurse or himself. Dr. Smith was holding on to the baby in her arms for what seemed like dear life, and the baby was giving us a piece her mind by putting her new set of lungs to good use.

"Quiet!" I ordered in a very loud tone. The hospital staff—including the security guard holding Mr. Johnson and another security guard who had just walked in—froze. Both Mr. Johnsons focused on me and thankfully stopped their shouts, only the baby's cries continued to echo through the room.

"Thank you. Now, Nurse Garcia, please take the baby to the nursery. She does not need the stress of all of this shouting." I saw that both men were about to object and before either of them could speak, I ordered, "Silence, you two! This is a hospital, and you are both grown men, so start acting like ones." I stared down at the two men, allowing my inner vampire to make a rare appearance. I saw their eyes widen with fear, and while I did not like scaring my patients, at least it held off more yelling.

Nurse Garcia took the baby girl from Dr. Smith and quickly left the room.

"Dr. Smith, please go tend to Mrs. Alicia Johnson and Mrs. Mary Johnson, and make sure they are both moved to the Maternity Ward."

"Yes, Dr. Cullen," Dr. Smith answered and hastily left the room.

I waited until the door was closed behind her before I spoke to the security guards. "Please release Mr. Johnson and Mr. Johnson and escort them both to my office. I will be with them as soon as I check on the babies."

"But—,"

"No way—,"

Both men started arguing, and I was forced to use my authority tone again. "Be quiet!" I cut them off. "I will get to the bottom of this, but this is neither the appropriate place nor the appropriate time for this kind of behavior. You will both leave with the security guards and wait for me in my office. I will join you there in a few minutes." My tone softened as I continued. "I know this is a late hour and we are all tired and on edge, but yelling and arguing isn't going to solve anything."

Both men seemed to calm down somewhat, and the guards were able to walk them outside of the room. I closed my eyes and pinched my nose bridge. This shift was proving more tiresome than I had thought possible.

I went to the nursery where Dr. Smith reported that both women were awake and moved to the Maternity Ward. The nurses took the newborns to their mothers to be fed, and I told Dr. Smith to go take a break in the staff lunchroom, calm down, and grab something to eat. I was rewarded with a grateful smile before she left the nursery.

Mr. Johnson and Mr. Johnson, along with one of the hospital's security guards, were waiting for me in my office. I let the security guard go and settled into my chair.

"Now, which one of you would like to start and explain to me what happened?" I asked and immediately saw that it was not a good course of action as the two men started speaking at the same time. Their tones rose with every word spoken, and I had to break them apart once again. "Okay, I can see that this is not going to work. First, may I call you James and Stewart? Seeing as both of you are named Mr. Johnson, it would be easier that way."

"Fine," James muttered, folding his arms across his chest, his face still flushed with anger.

"Fine," Stewart retorted, his posture mimicking that of the man sitting beside him.

"Good. Now, Stewart, please tell me what happened."

"I was in the delivery room, and the next thing I knew, I woke up in a hospital room, and the nurse wouldn't allow me to go see my wife." His tone rose as he spoke, and his face became flushed. His heart rate was skyrocketing.

"Stewart, please, calm down. You lost consciousness in the delivery room, and that is why you woke up in a different room. I am sure that the nurse was simply trying to get you to breathe some fresh air before going back into the delivery room."

He huffed dismissively.

"What happened next?"

"When I finally got to the waiting room, that idiot of a doctor came by and told me that my wife had a C-section!" he shouted. "When neither one of us agreed to it! Since when do you perform surgery without consent?" He stood up and stared down at me.

"Please sit down, Stewart," I said calmly. "I think there was a simple mix up. Your wife was not operated on; she had a natural birth and is now resting with your baby in the Maternity Ward. As soon as we are done here you can go to her."

"Are you telling me you _cut_ into _my wife_?" James, who had been quiet up until now, jumped to his feet and slammed his fist on my table.

"Calm down, James. I will explain everything to you, but I am sure you would prefer to do so in private." I looked at him questioningly.

"Fine, but I want answers!" He huffed but sat back down.

"And you will have them," I promised. "Now, Stewart, is there anything else?"

"No. I just want to see my wife and my baby." Stewart looked tired and defeated. "I don't even know what we had," he murmured.

"You had a beautiful baby girl," I answered with a smile. "Your wife and daughter are in the Maternity Ward right now." I explained how to get to the ward and saw his face light up with every passing second. "Go to your family," I told him with a smile.

"Thank you, Dr. Cullen," he said with a smile of his own and almost ran out the door.

_One down, one to go_ , I thought as I turned my attention to the seething James. "James, first of all, please let me explain what occurred during your wife's delivery, is that all right?"

"Fine," he said through gritted teeth.

"While your wife was in labor, I examined her progress, and I saw that the baby was too big for your wife's body structure—,"

"Are you telling me my son is fat?" he cut me off, his face red with anger.

"No, of course not," I said. "But your wife has a very petite figure, and women with a small build sometimes have trouble with delivering a baby."

I heard him mutter, "Stupid, good-for-nothing, little idiot," under his breath.

I chose not to address it. _People say the worst when they are upset._ "When I saw that your wife would be unable to deliver your baby in a natural birth, I explained to her that we would have to do a C-section in order to save both her and the baby's life. Your wife signed the consent form herself."

"Why wasn't I included in the decision?" he demanded.

"Because your wife is an adult and is able to sign the forms and because time was of the essence; we did not want to lose either one of them."

"Fine." James huffed. "But tell me this: why is it that that idiot of a doctor asked if I was Mr. Johnson and tried to tell me that my wife had a girl! When the doctors promised us that it is a boy!" His face turned purple with rage, and I heard his heart rate rise to dangerous levels. "There is no way Mary had a girl! That doctor was lying! She was trying to steal my boy, and I will have her ass on a plate for that!" he screeched.

"Sit down, James Johnson!" I ordered in a quiet but confident tone. "First, please refrain from using foul language. I know that you are upset, but you can still be civilized." I looked at him with a firm look of authority and waited until he gave up and sat back down. "Now, I am sure that this was an innocent mistake. Your wife gave birth to a baby boy. Since both you and Stewart have the same last name and your children were born within minutes of each other, the doctor made a simple error. Combined with the tension of the situation and the late hour, I can understand how it might have seemed to you, but I assure you—it was an innocent mistake."

"I want to see my wife and son," James said. His heart rate dropped somewhat, but his face was still red.

"I will take you to them."

"Good." James stood. "Let's go."

w.W.w

James calmed down only when he saw his wife and son, but even then, he refused to move away from their side and started questioning every single action the medical staff took. I was all too happy to leave James in the Maternity Ward when Denise paged me that I was needed in the ER.

The nephew of the mysterious Bible Woman had arrived.

I recognized the scent as soon as I stepped into the hallway leading to the ER. _So she really is a relative of one of the Quileutes_ , I thought with a grimace. _This can't be good._

There were three young boys standing in the ER as I entered the room. One of them was talking to Denise, and I assumed he was the woman's nephew. All three of the boys started shaking as soon as they saw and smelled me.

"You!" The boy who was talking to Denise suddenly shouted, pointing at me. "What did you do to my aunt?"

I raised my hands and said in a calming manner, "I did not do anything to your aunt. She arrived here earlier, and she was behaving in a very peculiar fashion. She is resting now. We found your phone number amongst her possessions, which is why you were contacted."

My words did little to calm him down. If anything, it seemed as though he was even more enraged by them.

"If I find out that you had laid so much as a finger on her..." he threatened.

"Do not threaten me, boy," I hissed in a tone that was too quiet for anyone other than the young werewolves to hear. "No harm has come to your aunt," I said a little louder. I saw the security guards once again on edge, looking at the boys with contemplating expressions.

"It's all right, Garry," I said to the security guard. "Nurse Willows?" I called without looking away from the three boys.

"Yes, Dr. Cullen?"

"Please take this young man and his friends to see the woman who was admitted earlier tonight."

"You mean the one who was quoting?" she asked, hesitating.

"Yes."

"Come with me," Nurse Willows said to the boys and turned to walk down one of the halls to the room where the woman was placed.

The three boys looked at each other, hesitating. I folded my arms across my chest and stared at them. Neither one of the three were at the meeting that took place last night, so either they went through their first fazing within the last twenty-four hours or they were on the verge of it now. _Either way, this isn't good._

After another minute spent staring, the three left the ER and followed Nurse Willows.

"I'll be in my office," I told Denise as I left in the other direction as quickly as I could.

I had my cell phone in my hand as soon as the door of my office closed behind me. I dialed the number and waited for an answer.

"Hello?" A surprisingly alert voice answered me.

"Hello, Sam. This is Carlisle Cullen," I introduced myself.

"What is the problem?" Sam asked, tense.

"I have three young boys from the reservation in the hospital. One of them has an aunt that was admitted earlier." I explained quickly about the incident with the woman and that the only contact was the phone number of her nephew. "I think it would be best if you arrive here before one of them morphs into a giant wolf in the middle of the hospital."

"I'm on my way," Sam said and hung up.

w.W.w

Sam arrived less than ten minutes after the phone call. He was able to convince the three young boys to calm down and leave the hospital without incident, promising to stay by the Quileute woman until she was ready to be discharged into the hands of the reservation's local doctor in the morning.

At seven in the morning when my shift ended, I was absolutely and utterly exhausted. If I were human, I would have crawled into my bed and spent the next twelve or so hours sleeping, I was sure of it. Every time during the shift that things seemed to be calming down and the shift was getting back to the normal routine, something else had to go wrong.

If it wasn't a drunken man taking doctors hostage, it was a crazy woman screaming at me that I was a demon. The two complicated deliveries and two very angry fathers along with the three very angry and very young werewolves turned the shift from a busy one into something resembling a nightmare.

One would think that that would be enough for one shift, but alas. Once the werewolves left, with the much more controlled Sam staying behind, a traffic accident between two cars and a gunshot victim arrived at the same time, making tonight's shift officially the worst shift I had ever had since coming to work at Forks General Hospital.

I sighed as I entered my car and drove away from the hospital. _I could really use some sleep right now,_ I thought to myself. As I made the short drive from the hospital to my home, I thought about the events that preceded the nightmarish shift—Bella's visit to the house and sharing our stories with her.

I was not surprised that she was able to guess our secret, being as perceptive as she was and both Edward and me making several mistakes around her, but I was very pleased to see her acceptance of us. Bella was a rare creature, kind, caring, and able to see beyond the plain labels that should have made her afraid of us. I was also pleased to see what her presence meant to each member of my new family. Alice was even more excited than usual, making Jasper happy to see his mate in a good mood. Bella brought even more goofiness out of Emmett than ever before, and the light I saw in Esme's eyes as she looked at Bella and Edward interact—that brought more joy to my dead heart that anything else.

Feeling much better than before, I parked the Mercedes in the garage and walked into the house, only to find that it was empty.

I listened carefully for several minutes to make sure, but I could hear nothing. The "kids"—and it was still somewhat amusing to think of four vampires who were all more than half a century old as kids—were off to school, judging from the time of day, and I thought that Esme must have gone for a hunt.

Unlike the previous months and even years, the house did not feel lonely anymore. Even as I made my way upstairs to my newly decorated bedroom suite, I could see Alice and Esme's touch in every detail of the house's interior.

I changed out of my work clothes, and after taking a warm shower, I decided to dress simply, putting on a pair of black slacks and a long-sleeved T-shirt. I stopped by my study but decided that I did not feel like immersing myself in my books or computer.

I heard and sensed that I was still alone in the house, so I decided to try something that I had not done in years. I went to the small room on the third floor, which was used as a library and a study, and took out my violin.

I closed my eyes as I began playing and submerged myself into the music. I mastered the violin during my stay in Italy more than two centuries ago. It was a nice distraction in a time when I was surrounded by vampires whom I considered to be civilized but saw too much of the barbaric side still present in them. I guess it was similar to the way Edward saw his piano—a source of comfort and pleasure.

I rarely composed my own pieces, preferring to play pieces created by great composers that spoke to me. That was how I came to enjoy the sonatas of Bach and the concertos of Paganini.

I began with Bach's Sonata for Violin and went through several of his compositions before shifting to the very intricate and technically complex composition of Tartini's Devil's Trill Sonata. It was a piece that even as a vampire posed a challenge, at least in my early days playing the violin. The piece was so challenging to humans that it was contemplated that Tartini had to have had six fingers in his left hand to be able to play it.

When I finished the sonata, my hands began playing a piece by Antonio Vivaldi—a great composer that I had had the pleasure of meeting in person—out of their own accord. I was initially surprised that my sub-conscious chose that specific part from his composition, _Le Quattro Stagioni_. It was the third movement from the second concerto of the piece, more commonly known as, "The Storm".

The fast pace of the notes, the building of the thunderstorm played through the delicate tones of the violin, and the emotions the melody evoked as I played, everything portrayed the way I felt during my shift.

I felt the smile on my face as I finished the short movement. It was just under three minutes when played in the tempo the composer intended for it.

Being able to express all of my emotions into the violin freed me of the frustration and stress that even the hot shower could not.

As the last note drifted to a close, I lowered my violin and opened my eyes, with a smile still hovering over my lips. I froze as soon as I saw Esme standing in the entryway of the room, her eyes locked on mine.

w.W.w

**Esme**

It was a very eventful day, to say the least, but there was one thing that gave me hope and joy—and it was the way Edward had looked at Bella when he didn't think anyone was noticing. The tenderness of his gaze, the way his body aligned itself to hers every time he moved, the softness of his motions when he was near her—it was something that I had once thought I would never see from him.

I wondered if he had realized his own feelings, but I did not ask or ponder. It would come on its own, I was certain of it. Another certainty was that Bella was going to be spending many hours in this house, so I decided that a short trip to the grocery store and the local bookshop was in order.

I hadn't cooked in more than eight decades, hence the trip to the bookshop to acquire several cookbooks and the trip to the grocery store—to make sure I had enough materials to experiment with and eventually come up with something edible to feed the human guest we were sure to be having around often.

As I came back to the house, I was surprised to hear music coming from the third floor of the house. It was a violin playing, so I thought it could not be Edward, but I could not guess who it might be.

I put the groceries and the books away and made my way to the third floor. The music drew me in. It was so beautiful and full of emotion. I walked slowly up the stairs, using a human pace and being as quiet as I could be. I did not want to disturb the wonderful playing. Just as I stepped on the third floor, the music changed to yet another new piece. It was passionate and vaguely familiar.

I followed the sound to a small room that was used as a secondary library, and I was stunned frozen at the doorway. My eyes focused on the beautiful sight before me. Carlisle was playing the violin with such passion and delight written over his face that it would have taken my breath away were it possible. His eyes were closed as he played. There was so much grace to his movements, even more than I was used to seeing from him.

I had had many flashes of what seemed like memories during this past month that I had been living in this house, but in none of them did I see him playing. I often found myself imagining—or maybe remembering, if I was to believe Alice's theory about a different path that my life could have taken—the way Carlisle might look in the throes of passion. My imagination paled in comparison to the expression I saw on his face as he played.

The composition he was playing was shorter than the other ones. it surprised me to see him lower his violin at the end of it and the softest smile graced his lips right before he open his eyes and froze as he saw me standing there.

We stayed locked in our gaze for several minutes. Neither of us dared to move, but oddly enough, both of us kept breathing.

I could not get enough of his scent. It spoke to the very core of my nature, and for the first time in over four weeks, I allowed myself to come to terms with the meaning of it all. The pull I had felt, the rightness of his presence, the appeal of his scent, the recognition deepened within me...

Carlisle was my mate.

I did not know which one of us made the first step, but it did not take more than two to be dangerously close to each other. My breathing picked up, and I noticed his eyes darken. He was so close that his scent overwhelmed me. My world had contracted around me to a small bubble that held only the two of us. I watched him slowly leaning toward me. His face grew nearer with an excruciatingly slow pace, and I knew that he was giving me the chance to stop him many times over.

He stopped when there was nothing more than a breath between our lips, his deep golden eyes now dark and sparkling. One of his hands came up to caress my cheek, and I was the one to finally close that small but annoying distance between us.

It was heaven.

His lips were soft and surprisingly warm, and I heard a soft moan escape and swallow in his mouth. I wasn't sure if it was his or mine, but it did not matter because at that moment, his lips parted and he gently sucked my tongue into his mouth, his arms holding me flush next to his body. I tilted my head slightly and slid my tongue between his lips to get a full taste of him.

I was grateful that neither of us had to breathe as our mouths moved in unison. The kiss was so passionate and yet so gentle; it was fervency and longing wrapped together to form the most amazing kiss I had ever shared with anyone.

"I have waited for so long to be able to do that," he murmured against my lips, his forehead leaning on mine, a small smile on his lips.

_I have waited for you all my life._

* * *

**The violin pieces that Carlisle plays in this chapter are:**

" **Partita No. 3 in E major BWV 1006" and "Sonata for Violin solo No. 1 in G minor, BWV 1001" by J.S. Bach,**

" **Violin Concerto No.2 in B minor" by Niccolò Paganini,**

" **The Devil's Trill Sonata" by Giuseppe Tartini,**

**"Four Seasons, Summer, 3rd movement, Presto - Storm" by Antonio Vivaldi,**

**Thank you for reading, please take a moment and leave a review to let me know what you think.**

**Alley Cat.**


	22. A Step in the Right Direction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Esme**

I looked into his eyes. They were a darker shade than the golden hue I was so used to seeing in them. I had seen many emotions pass through Carlisle's eyes over the month that I had lived with him: happiness, satisfaction, amusement, worry, thirst, curiosity...but this was the first time I had ever seen his eyes darken with lust.

I knew that my eyes reflected the same emotion, and I was eager to meet his lips when they came crashing on mine yet again. The kiss was fiercer this time around, his lips harsh against mine. His tongue demanded entrance to my mouth—a demand that I was all too eager to fulfill. Carlisle held me tight as his mouth moved against mine, ravaging and dominant.

I moaned into his mouth and felt his answering growl in mine.

I had never seen Carlisle so fierce, so uncontrolled. He had always been the epitome of self-control and poise, but as his mouth devoured mine now. He was overcome by the vampire demon that he had always tried to conceal with his human-like mannerisms, and I relished in the feeling. I was beyond excited that I could invoke such a strong reaction from him.

I wanted him to be feral. I wanted him to lose control and take me. My inner monster, the one that I had spent so many years repressing, was basking in the glory of freedom. My human reason was forgotten, and I was acting on pure instinct.

I grabbed his head, pulling him closer to my body, my teeth grazing his bottom lip, and I rejoiced when he growled again. My other hand was tearing his shirt away from his body. I was too impatient for skin-to-skin contact to wait for him to take it off himself. I smiled as his hands tore my own attire in response.

His tongue came to meet mine and twirled inside my mouth, studying my taste at the same time as I drank his. He tasted delicious, the essence of the man that I had desired for so long. Memories of fantasies came to my mind, and I decided that they paled in the face of reality.

His kisses were demanding, his tongue seeking contact with mine. In between kisses, his teeth gently grazed my bottom lip, never breaking contact between our mouths.

The kiss was passionate and slightly wild, and I loved it. I had never been kissed like that, and I was no innocent when it came to the bedroom, having borne a child and been involved with a vampire for several years. But I had never experienced the levels of passion and desire that I was experiencing now.

In no more than five seconds, we were both down to our undergarments as the rest of our clothes were in tatters, thrown across the floor.

As soon as my pants were gone I hitched my leg around his waist, holding him in a vice grip as I rubbed myself on him. His hand came up to hold my thigh, and he growled and pushed his pelvis into mine.

I threw my head back and enjoyed as Carlisle suckled on my jawline and made a path to my earlobe, nibbling on it and moaning.

"You feel so good," he whispered.

My hand held his head to my neck as he continued to lick and suck his way down to my shoulder. It felt so good and yet not good enough.

"More." I whimpered, only half-aware that I had spoken out loud.

"With pleasure." Carlisle's answer was almost a purr, and it sent shivers down my body and straight to the apex of my thighs.

I heard the sound of tearing fabric and felt my breasts making contact with his muscular chest, my nipples already hard before he even touched them.

"I want to lick every part of your body," he whispered as he kissed along my collarbone from one shoulder to the other, his hand holding my thigh firmly against him and the other pressing my lower back.

"God, yes." I moaned. My head fell to his shoulder, and I rained kisses and nibbles on the hard skin. My hand was holding his back so tight that were he anything else but a vampire, I would have drawn blood.

I could not stand it any longer; I needed more contact. My breasts ached for his hands, his mouth, his tongue, but he deliberately avoided touching them as his hands caressed the sides of my body from my thigh to just below my breast and then over my arm.

"Your skin is so soft," he murmured against my shoulder.

I pulled him closer and felt my back press against the grainy texture of the drywall. Carlisle used our new position to lift me in his arms and place his hands over my butt cheeks, securing me in place.

Carlisle hissed as I rocked my body into his. The only thing that separated us were two _very_ thin sheets of cloth, and they weren't much of a barrier.

"You are so wet for me," he said with a smile in his voice as he kissed his way back up to my mouth. "I can almost imagine how good it would be to just sink"—he paused to gaze into my eyes, and I felt myself growing impossibly more aroused at his stare—"my _very_ hard cock inside you." He accented the last words with gentle thrusts upward, and each movement elicited a moan from me.

I scratched his back with my fingernails, digging them deep into the rippling muscles and enjoying the growl he emitted. It was amazing to see Carlisle, always so composed and collected, behaving so wildly.

_It's always the quiet ones._

Carlisle left one hand holding me to his pelvis and raised the other to grab the back of my neck. He tilted my head to the side, giving himself ample access to my neck. I rocked myself on top of him again; the feel of his erection, even when separated by two sets of underwear, was a pleasurable torture.

I felt him smile against my skin and then his teeth grazed my shoulder. "That feels so good." I whimpered.

"You know what else would feel good?" he asked, teasing.

"You. Inside me," I answered. _Two can play this game_ , I thought with satisfaction as I felt him thrust upwards at my response.

"I absolutely concur, my lady," he said with a smile, and his mouth came up to meet mine in a searing kiss.

I felt my toes curl at the intensity of his mouth. His hand released my neck and teased my breast again, caressing me just under the breast in a feather-light touch.

"Stop teasing me." I growled against his mouth.

"But I love the sounds you make when I do." He chuckled and passed his fingers once again just under my breast. He ran them on the skin of the valley between them, never touching me where I really needed him to touch.

I bit his bottom lip in protest.

"My kitten has sharp teeth." He smiled and returned the gesture. I felt a tingling sensation as his venom came in contact with the bite on my lip. It was like having bubbling champagne inside my mouth, and I gasped at the new sensation. Carlisle pulled back to look at my expression and was met with what I was sure to be a huge grin.

His eyes sparkled with amusement, satisfaction, and, of course, lust.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

Feeling Esme pressed up against my body was the best sensation possible, other than, probably, being sheathed in the warmth of her body. I could not help but tease her. It made her whimper and growl and moan in a delicious way that turned me on impossibly more than I already was.

I was momentarily shocked when she bit me, not because it hurt, but because it felt amazingly _good_. I decided to return the favor and gently bit on her lower lip, making her gasp.

I pulled back to watch her face, fearing that I might have hurt her, but I was met with such a smile that I had no doubt she enjoyed it as much as I did.

Curiosity soared through me at the same time as my lust spiked. I felt my eyes darken as several possibilities crossed my mind.

_I wonder…_

I lifted Esme slightly higher on my body, breaking the contact between our groins, and heard her whimper in protest. I smiled to myself. If my guess was correct, she would be writhing in pleasure against me in no time.

I passed my hand just under her breasts again, but this time I cupped her right breast and lowered my head to lick the supple flesh. Her fingers dug into my scalp as soon as my tongue made contact with her skin.

I made several passes around her nipple, growing closer with each pass, prolonging the anticipation, and when I finally took the hard peak into my mouth, I gently bit on it, just as I did with her lip.

"Oh my...Carlisle!" Esme gasped, and her words were followed by a guttural moan.

I smiled with her nipple still between my teeth. Her hands pushed my head back to her, and her back arched from the wall, pushing her breasts to me.

I gave her breast another lick and cupped it with my hand, massaging the voluptuous orb as I kissed my way to her other breast. I could not get enough of her taste. It was sweet and fresh and reminded me of roses and green vines, fresh yet not too overpowering.

Once I reached her other nipple, I sucked it into my mouth and rolled my tongue around it before giving it a small bite, causing Esme to moan. The sound shot right to my groin, and I wanted nothing more than bury myself inside her body and give us both the release we were craving.

My lips did not leave her skin as I lowered her body back to its previous position. I spotted the faint scar on her neck, the mark left by Edward when he changed her. The fact that she bore the mark of another male was enraging to my inner vampire. _She should be wearing my mark!_

I covered the scar with my mouth and brushed my tongue over the slight raising of her skin. It was incredibly erotic to hear the sounds and feel the movements Esme was making when my tongue passed over her scar. I could not hold any longer; I _needed_ to be inside her.

_She deserves better than a fuck against the wall_ , a small voice tried to remind me. I tried to ignore it. My entire body was burning with flame of passion. Stopping right now was the last thing I wanted to do. The friction between our bodies was no longer enough. The cloth that prevented me from joining with my mate was almost offending, and yet...I kept arguing with myself.

_At least take her to your bed,_ the man in me argued.

_Too far_.

Esme's hands were all over my body, and I knew she was just as willing for this. Every moan, every rub, every pass of her fingers on my skin, every kiss—it all pointed to the same desire.

The young human that was inside me made one final attempt at stopping the monster from raging. _She might regret it later._

And that was the winning argument. No matter how much I wanted Esme and me to become one, no matter how pressing the need was, I did not want to risk her regretting it. It was too soon and too fast.

_Esme deserves better than being taken against the wall as though she is no better than a streetwalker_. The realization was like a figurative bucket of cold water over my head.

I slowed my kisses, and my hands were no longer prying into her flesh, but gentle and caressing. I lifted my head to look into her eyes and felt myself drown. The bright golden eyes were the color of old whiskey: smoldering, rich amber.

"You are so beautiful," I whispered, unable to look away. "I have waited for you all my life." I held her body close to mine and brought one hand to cup her cheek. "And you deserve more than being taken against a wall."

I watched her expression carefully, praying that she would not take this as a rejection.

I saw confusion surface first and bewilderment, then realization and panic as I helped lower her legs from around my waist. Finally, I saw shame before she averted her eyes away from me.

I held her chin and nudged her face upwards. "Please, do not feel embarrassed or rejected. I want nothing more than to complete what we were doing. Please, look at me," I begged.

Her eyes slowly made their way from the floor to my shoulders and then to my face, but she did not meet my eyes.

"You are the most precious person in the world to me. I spent three centuries looking for someone who could make me feel half as good as you do. You complete me in every aspect. You are so kind and caring. You wear your heart on your sleeve. And I have never seen anything as beautiful as your heart. I want to deserve it. I do not wish to take you as though you were meaningless; I want to prove that I am worthy of your affection, of your respect and of your heart."

I held my breath, waiting to see her response.

Esme lifted her eyes and I saw tears form in them and it broke my heart.

"I am sorry for hurting—" I was cut off when she placed two fingers over my mouth.

"Don't," she breathed, her fingers so soft against my lips. "I understand." She gave me a soft smile, and once I saw it reflect in her eyes, I let myself breathe again.

Esme hugged me then. She wrapped her arms around my waist and placed her head on my chest, nuzzling the base of my throat as she breathed in my scent. I lifted one of my hands from her waist and threaded my fingers in the caramel waves of her hair. I began passing my fingers through the silken tresses as we stood in an embrace that said so much more than simple physical contact.

I closed my eyes and felt content. My mind cleared of all thoughts but the ones about the beautiful creature I was holding in my arms.

We stood like that for several minutes before I heard Esme speak.

"Carlisle?"

"Yes?"

"Are you purring?" I could hear her smile in her words.

"I guess I am," I answered with a smile of my own. It was an instinctive reaction, one that I had never had before. One that no other could invoke. Both the human man and the centuries old vampire inside me were in agreement.

"I thought so," Esme whispered in content and nuzzled a little further into my neck.

"Esme?" I said after several more minutes of silence passed between us.

"Yes?" she asked without moving from her position.

"I love you," I whispered in her ear.

"I love you too, my Carlisle."

w.W.w

**Paul**

_Paul, you are on patrol for tonight. If there is anything out of the ordinary, howl,_ Sam said in my head. We were running patrol every night since we learned the leeches were back in town. I still couldn't believe that Sam wouldn't allow us to attack them. _Treaty shmeaty. A good leech is a dead leech_.

_Paul, cut it out,_ Sam commanded.

_Fine,_ I grumbled. _I'll see you in the morning._

I felt Sam's presence leave my mind, and I knew that he had phased back. _Probably going over to Emily's,_ I thought.

_Probably,_ Jake agreed. _But we both got off the hook pretty easily._

_I know._ I sighed. _Did you talk to Bella yet?_

_Nope. That mind-reading leech is always around her._

_Did you tell Sam?_

_I did,_ Jake grumbled.

_And?_

Jake showed me the memories from his talk with Sam. _Figures,_ I thought. _Sam believes too much in these bloodsuckers. I can't believe he bought that crap about protecting Bella!_

_I can't either,_ Jake agreed. _But we can't do anything about it until they break the treaty. Sam's orders._ Jake shrugged mentally. _Well, I'm going back to my dad's. Happy patrolling._

_Yeah, whatever. See you tomorrow._

_See ya,_ Jake thought. Moments later, his mind was also gone.

It had taken me a while to feel comfortable in this new body, especially with all the voices that accompanied sharing a pack mind, but I was okay with it now. When I was alone, it was the best feeling. Just running freely in the forest and knowing that I was protecting the tribe and the people of Forks, it felt good.

I still couldn't understand why Sam trusted those leeches so much. Especially after what happened to Quil's aunt—and I didn't buy all that bullshit about Dr. Leech not giving her anything; she was fine earlier that day.

_We could take them now_ , I thought. _There are six of them and seven of us. We could totally take them._ But Sam didn't see it that way; he was sticking to the bloody treaty. As long as they stayed on their side of the treaty line and kept their fangs away from humans, there was nothing we could do.

Patrol was as quiet as always. There were no scents of bloodsuckers on our lands. It was almost a shame. I would have really loved to tear a leech or two into pieces.

I was making my way back from the shoreline when I heard someone move in the forest. I stopped and listened. I could hear the wind blow through the trees and nothing else. No animals, no heartbeat but my own. It was quiet, a little _too_ quiet. I sniffed the air; there was nothing new—just the regular scents of the forest—but something still felt off.

I continued to run my patrols, paying even greater attention to every sound I could hear and each smell I could sense. I was almost at the treaty line when I saw something. It was a figure, looked human enough, but there was no sound of a heartbeat. My instincts were practically screaming at me, _vampire_. I didn't know why she didn't smell like the rest of the leeches, but I couldn't care less; this bloodsucker was on _our_ side of the treaty line. She was fair game.

I charged at her from behind, aiming a bite at her shoulder, but in the last moment, she turned her head and moved. I missed her by only a few inches.

I recovered quickly and turned to face her. The element of surprise was gone, but I was still certain that I could take her. She was alone. I could smell no other bloodsuckers. Actually, I could smell _no_ bloodsuckers at all, but that was beside the point. _Maybe she's one of those gifted leeches, like that mind reader._

She was dressed all in black, complete with a cloak, and I almost laughed. _Classic vampire much?_ But then I noticed her eyes—they were bright red. _A human drinker. Well, you just signed your death warrant, missy._

For a moment, I swore I could see a flicker of fear in her eyes, and I was grinning. _Yes, I am your worst nightmare, bloodsucker._ I launched at her again with my claws extended, aiming for her head, but I missed her and instead graced her with three long gashes in her cloak

I barely had time to turn around before she was on me. _The bitch is quick._ Her teeth came to the side of my neck, much too close for comfort. Before she had the chance to bite, I rolled to the side and managed to narrowly avoid her. I acted on pure instinct as I attacked her, trying to target her limbs and head, but she always managed to throw me off before I could cause her any serious damage.

Again and again, I attacked and she deflected me, throwing me onto a tree or a rock. My instincts allowed me to escape any serious injury, and the few scrapes and bruises I got healed quickly, but I was growing tired, and I could see that she was now giving me a grin of her own.

I did my best not to show my weakness, or my fatigue, but I was getting too slow and she was gradually causing more damage. A lucky strike on her part earned me several broken ribs and a sharp pain in my shoulder. I breathed heavily, and my reactions became even slower as I waited for my bones to heal. I tried with all my might to attack her again and was encouraged to see that I was able to bite off a large chunk of her left leg. It left a sickeningly sweet aftertaste in my mouth, and I was happy to see the grin leave her face.

My shoulder was still sending jolts of pain every time I moved, even as my ribs were mending. However, I was unable to dodge her when she jumped forward, grabbed both of my shoulders, and threw me over her head.

I went through several trees, but the splinters and scrapes barely had time to register in my mind. My already-injured shoulder was dislocated, the other was severely damaged, and my right ankle was bent in the wrong direction. On one hand, I was grateful that she hadn't tried to bite me because that would have meant positive death for me, but as I struggled to swim through the haze of pain that flooded my thoughts, I knew that I had been overconfident and reckless. I could not take her alone, and unless I could get the rest of the pack to help me, La Push was going to be one protector short in a matter of minutes.

I howled with everything I had, praying that I wasn't too far from the reservation for someone to hear me. Sam, Jake, Jared, hell, even one of the newbies would have been enough.

I was able to break through the pain in my body for long enough to see the female vampire approaching slowly, almost at a human-pace, with a smirk on her face.

"I will enjoy telling Caius about you. I really don't understand why he fears you werewolves so much; you seem almost _too_ easy to kill."

I tried my best to ignore the fear spreading through me as her words registered and there were still no new thoughts present in my mind. I took another ragged breath and howled again, but the sound that came out was just as broken as my body felt.

The vampire came closer and bent to look into my eyes.

"I wish I could stay here and play, I really do," she said mockingly as she reached and snapped the bones in my right arm with ease.

I screamed in my mind as the pain shot through my body, unable to do anything else.

"But I have to go now, puppy, and I don't have a leash for you to take you with me." She continued in her mocking tone, and another pain shot through my body when she hit me in the ribs—the partly healed bones were crushed again. "So it's time for the puppy to be put to sleep," she almost whispered.

_I don't want to die,_ I thought as I watched, helplessly, as her red lips part and the moonlight reflected on her sharp, venom-coated, teeth.

I closed my eyes and waited for the final blow. The only comfort for me was when I heard Sam and Jake's thoughts join me, but I was in so much pain that their thoughts were no more than slurred words.

_Hang on...coming..._ Jake pleaded.

_Don't...up!_ Sam commanded, but my body was too battered to be able to react.

Several seconds passed before I realized that I didn't feel the fatal bite or the burning sensation that the legends spoke of when venom was introduced to our systems. Instead, I heard what sounded like rocks crashing, trees being broken into splinters, and the disjointed sounds of my pack's thoughts.

I was in so much pain that even the simple act of opening my eyes felt like trying to lift a semitrailer with my bare arms, but it wasn't impossible, and I needed to know what was going on. I didn't want to jinx myself, but I couldn't help but wonder— _why wasn't I dead?_

First, there was nothing more than a blur of black and white, but as my eyes began to focus, I saw that two figures were engaged in a fight. One was mostly black, and I figured it must be the female vampire that was about to finish me off just seconds ago, but I couldn't focus my eyes enough to recognize the other one. I heard more shrieks and clashes and what sounded like metal being torn apart before I could smell smoke.

I closed my eyes again, just for a moment, but I was lost in the darkness for a while before I could register Sam's thoughts in my mind. He was shouting my name, and asking me something.

_Sam?_

_Paul!_ _Oh, thank god!_ Sam sounded relieved, but his voice sounded miles away.

_It hurts._

_I know, Paul. Hang in there. We're coming._

I could sense Jake, Jared and Quil's presence in my mind, on top of Sam's, but their thoughts were still slurred and incomprehensible to me.

Suddenly I felt someone touching me, an icy touch that could only belong to one creature, a vampire.

_I guess I'm going to die after all._ My thoughts were almost accepting. I didn't want to die, but the pain in my body was too sharp, like a thousand knifes being twisted repeatedly inside my flesh.

"Paul, I need you to phase back into your human form." A soft voice spoke to me through the pain-induced haze. I assumed it belonged to the cold hand.

I was confused at the request. _Why would the leech need me to morph into my human form? It's not like I can do any damage at the moment, and his teeth are sharp enough to pass through my fur easily._

"I could treat you a lot more easily in your human form." The soft voice continued to speak.

_Phase, Paul!_ Sam's thoughts ordered. _Concentrate and phase back!_

_I'll...try..._

I did my best to steer my way through the black river of pain and find enough calmness to phase.

_That's it, brother,_ Jake encouraged me.

_You can do it, Paul,_ Jared thought.

I took a deep breath. It was ragged and painful, but it helped me focus, and I felt my body slowly take on a human form. First, the fur was gone and the tail pulled back in, then my legs straightened—sending another jolt of pain, but it was too late to stop it—and finally the upper part of my body turned human once again.

I felt cold hands touching me, and the contact made me hiss. My skin was burning hot, and the cold hands felt like tiny needles penetrating my skin. My eyes flew open, and I found myself staring in a pair of golden eyes.

"It's good to have you back, Paul." The eyes smiled and the soft voice from before seemed to belong to them. I felt a prick in my arm and heard the soft voice explain. "I gave you some morphine. Your body will probably burn it pretty quickly, and I will have to give you another dose later, but it should help ease your pain."

As he spoke, I felt the pain retreat. Slowly, it was replaced with some much-needed numbness.

"It's starting to affect him." Another soft voice spoke, he was further away, but it was just as familiar as the first one.

"Carlisle is the one treating you, Paul." The more distant voice said, "I'm Edward. The vampire that attacked you was disposed of."

I tried to smile. _She won't be putting any more puppies to sleep._ The thought was too funny, and I began to chuckle. My broken ribs reminded me that it wasn't such a bright idea, and I had to pull back my reaction to just a smile.

"Oh, the morphine is definitely affecting him." Edward chuckled. "His mind is full of puppies and pillows."

I frowned, but then realized that he was right; I did picture several golden retriever puppies tearing white feather-filled pillows. _So this is what it feels like to be high._

"I imagine that it is," Edward answered. I assumed someone asked him what he meant, as he continued to explain. "Paul here was thinking that this must be the way it feels to be high."

"Well, I hope to be able to set your bones with as little pain as possible, but I can't avoid it completely," Carlisle said in an apologetic tone, "and if I do not set them now, they will heal the wrong way and I would have to re-break them."

Re-breaking did not sound like fun, so I nodded.

It was painful, even with the heavy dose of drug in my system, but after several terrible minutes, Dr. Leech had my shoulder back in place and my arm and leg straightened and gave me another dose of morphine. I was drifting into sleep under the heavy drug, but this time the darkness wasn't as painful as before and I welcomed it with open arms.

w.W.w

**Edward**

I was in the process of disposing of the carcass of a deer that I had drained when I heard the thoughts. I instantly recognized the voice, and I knew that her presence in the vicinity of Forks was not a good sign.

_So Aro has finally decided to send his spies after me._ I was expecting this; in fact, it took Aro longer than I would have thought it would. _Things must be busy in Italy._

I listened carefully to her thoughts in order to try and locate her. Using my sense of smell would do me no good; she was using her gift to mask herself. It didn't take me long to reason out that she was close to the treaty line, and I immediately took off in that direction.

I listened intently as I ran, and I could hear that another mind was closing in on her. It was one of the wolves, Paul. He was patrolling the area and had just caught sight of the vampire that was invading his tribe's lands. The fool was cocky and overconfident and decided to tackle her on his own. Francesca was a trained fighter, and he was still a teenager who operated mostly on instincts. He was nowhere near being her match, and it was showing very quickly.

At least he had enough reason to howl for his pack, even if it was too late. They wouldn't be able to reach him in time to prevent his death. I might not have liked the wolves very much, but I wasn't about to let one of them be murdered when there was something I could do about it.

_Besides, I definitely don't need Aro learning of the wolves' existence._

I was almost too late myself, but Francesca chose to get cocky herself, and that gave me enough time to reach them. Just as she was about to administer the fatal bite, I jumped on top of her from behind and sank my teeth into her shoulder. She threw me off before I could rip her arm off completely, but I had done enough damage to disable its use. Her eyes and thoughts showed her fear as she recognized her attacker.

"I didn't think you were much of a dog person, Tony." She hissed. Her thoughts were confused. _Why do you care if I killed the dog?_

"Well, I didn't take you for an unobservant idiot," I retorted. "I guess we were both in the wrong."

I read the intent in her thoughts before she attacked, and I deflected her, this time finishing the job and tearing her arm away from her body. She screamed with pain.

I couldn't kill her just yet. I needed information. She had been careful enough to keep her thoughts away from her mission as soon as she recognized me, and that left too much information unknown to me.

"You will pay for this, bastard." She charged.

I dodged her easily and pinned her to the ground under my body. "Now, now. There is no need for that kind of language, Fran. It isn't befitting a lady of your stature," I mocked. "Tell me, how long have you been following me?"

I read the memory in her thoughts before she could conceal it—Aro had instructed her to follow me about a year ago, and she had been reporting back once every two months. He wasn't pleased with her last report from two weeks ago—she had no leads—and he hinted that she might not be trying hard enough. The pain was distracting her from the need to guard her thoughts.

"Fuck you!" she spat, angry with herself for revealing the information.

"Sorry, Fran, been there, done that, not interested in an encore." She struggled to escape my hold, so I gave her another bite on the shoulder. "Who did he send with you?" I demanded, keeping my teeth close to her skin.

"No one."

It was the truth. She was in too much pain to even try to conceal it.

"Good girl," I said. "Well, I'm afraid I can't let you go back to Italy and spill the beans on me, but since you've been kind enough to answer my questions, I will at least grant you the mercy of a quick death."

She made one final attempt to throw me off of her before I separated her head from her body. I did not hate her and she gave me all the information I needed, so there was no point in prolonging her suffering. I was no longer the monster the Volturi had trained me to be.

I pulled out the lighter from my pocket. It was something I always carried with me, even after leaving the Volturi.

_Old habits die hard,_ I mused as I lit her body on fire. Once I was done, I turned my attention back to Paul and evaluated his injuries. I wasn't worried about him hearing my conversation with Francesca; he was too far gone in his pain.

I could hear Sam and Jacob making their way to us. They were only about a minute or two behind me. Two more wolves—Jared and Quil—were also making their way over. Unfortunately, none of them could help Paul as neither had any medical training.

I pulled out my cell phone and dialed Carlisle's number.

He answered at the first ring. "I'm on my way, Edward. Just tell me where you are."

"Half a mile north of the treaty line, two miles west of the road. How did you know?"

"Alice said you'd need me. She couldn't see why, though."

"One of the wolves was attacked by a vampire. He's in pretty bad shape."

"I'll be there in about three minutes."

"Thank you," I said and hung up.

Sam and Jake made it to the area forty seconds later. I could see them assessing the situation—the burning vampire and me kneeling next to Paul's broken body. Jake was about to attack, interpreting the situation as though I was the one who caused Paul's injuries, but he was held back by a sharp barked command from Sam.

"I did not attack him, Jacob," I spat and turned to Sam. "Carlisle is on his way. He should be able to help Paul."

Sam nodded.

Two more wolves appeared from behind them, a mix of fear and anger in their thoughts. I returned my attention to Paul but made sure not to turn my back on any of them. I wanted to believe that Sam would not let them attack me, but I wasn't about to get careless.

From what I could tell, Paul had a fracture in his right leg—it was twisted in the wrong direction and would need to be set right—had an open fracture in his arm, a dislocated shoulder, and several broken ribs. I listened to his heartbeat, it was rapid but stable.

Carlisle arrived a minute after the wolves.

"He's in a lot of pain," I told him. "His ribs are broken and his shoulder is dislocated. I didn't check for internal injuries."

He nodded and approached Paul.

There were several hisses from the wolves behind us.

"We're not going to harm him." I was annoyed. "But he needs help. So unless one of you happens to have a medical degree I didn't know about, shut up and let Carlisle treat him."

_Back off, guys,_ Sam ordered, and the wolves reluctantly obeyed.

I took a step back as Carlisle kneeled in front of Paul. "Paul, I need you to phase back into your human form," he said, speaking in a soft calming tone.

Paul was confused. _Why would the leech need me to morph into my human form? It's not like I can do any damage at the moment, and his teeth are sharp enough to pass through my fur easily._

"I could treat you a lot more easily in your human form."

_Phase, Paul!_ Sam's thoughts ordered. _Concentrate and phase back!_

_I'll...try..._ Paul answered. His thoughts were weakening, and I knew that it was not a good sign.

"He's trying," I whispered to Carlisle.

The wolves, finally deciding to cooperate, at least for now, encouraged him.

_That's it, brother._

_You can do it, Paul._

Paul took a deep breath and slowly the huge wolf was replaced with a naked teenager.

"It's good to have you back, Paul," Carlisle said as soon as Paul opened his eyes.

His thoughts were still hazed and unfocused from the pain.

Carlisle took out a syringe from his bag and filled it with a heavy dose of morphine. "It's morphine," I said quietly, responding to Sam's questioning thoughts.

"I gave you some morphine. Your body will probably burn it pretty quickly, and I will have to give you another dose later, but it should help ease your pain," Carlisle explained. _It's the most I can give him, more than that, and it would kill him, but I don't know how his high body temperature will affect the drug,_ he told me in his thoughts.

"It's starting to affect him," I answered him.

Paul's thoughts told me that he could not identify either one of us. "Carlisle is the one treating you, Paul," I told him. "I'm Edward. The vampire that attacked you was disposed of."

Paul made a futile attempt to smile. _She won't be putting any more puppies to sleep._

"Oh, the morphine is definitely affecting him." I chuckled. "His mind is full of puppies and pillows."

_So this is what it feels like to be high,_ Paul thought.

"I imagine that it is."

Jake was wondering what I was talking about.

"Paul here was thinking that this must be the way it feels to be high," I explained.

"Well, I hope to be able to set your bones with as little pain as possible, but I can't avoid it completely," Carlisle said in an apologetic tone, "and if I do not set them now, they will heal in the wrong way and I would have to re-break them."

I heard the wolves shiver at the idea, Paul included, before he nodded.

Even with the large amount of morphine in his system, we could all tell that the process was painful. As soon as Carlisle was done and Paul's bones were set, Carlisle gave him another dose of morphine.

"This will knock him out for a while. I can't tell exactly how long, but it should be enough time for you to take him back to the reservation," Carlisle explained as he pulled the needle out of Paul's arm.

Paul was out within seconds.

Sam ordered Jared and Quil to take Paul back to the reservation. I could tell that Sam wished to speak with us.

"Sam wishes to speak with us, Carlisle."

"Of course."

_I'm going to phase back. Follow them to the reservation and make sure Paul is taken care of._

_Are you sure, you don't want me to stay?_ Jacob asked.

_Positive._

_Fine,_ Jake said and disappeared after the boys.

_I'll be right back,_ Sam said and went to the trees.

"Sam is going to phase back," I explained to Carlisle.

Sam was back a few seconds later, wearing a pair of cut off shorts.

"Can you please tell me what happened?" he asked.

"Paul saw the vampire cross the treaty line and decided to deal with her by himself," I answered. "But she was a trained fighter, and he was no match for her."

"Did you know his attacker?"

"We've met." I decided that it was not the time for long stories about the Volturi. "I was hunting northeast from here when I heard her thoughts. Paul sustained so many injuries _because_ I was so far. It took me several minutes to arrive here, and I was almost too late. I called Carlisle as soon as I disposed of her."

"Thank you both," Sam said his thoughts sincere.

"There is no need to thank us, Sam," Carlisle answered him. "We are on the same side; we are both interested in keeping the people of Forks safe."

"I suppose we are. Still, thank you."

"You're welcome."

Sam nodded and turned to leave.

I waited until he was out of hearing range, listening to his thoughts, before I spoke to Carlisle. "He thinks tonight was a step in the right direction. He is still suspicious of us, but he is willing to keep an open mind."

"That is indeed a step in the right direction." Carlisle smiled. "Come on, let's get back home."

* * *

**Thank you for reading, please take a moment to leave a review and let me know what you think.**

**Alley Cat.**


	23. Secrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I felt as though I was walking on air as I walked to the Biology classroom with Edward by my side. My mind kept going over his words, again and again. I was slightly caught up with daydreaming about _later_. Only slightly because even on a good day, I had to pay attention to where I was going or I would end up falling flat on my face, and today I had the added disadvantage of a sprained ankle.

_Edward wouldn't let me fall,_ I thought to myself and had to stifle a sigh at the thought of his name. I wouldn't have believed it possible that the simple thought of him would give me so much pleasure, but I was not about to complain.

Edward walked me to our lab table and helped me to my seat. Our eyes locked together, and I felt my cheeks coloring. His eyes were gradually darkening and seemed to hold a fire within them. A normal person would have been afraid, but I wasn't for some reason. _Maybe because you know it's not your blood he's thirsting for this time around,_ a small voice teased inside me. I let out a sigh and dropped my gaze to the table, thoroughly embarrassed. The only comfort was that although Edward could probably hear my heart beating faster in his presence, he could _not_ hear the accompanying thoughts.

I did my best to concentrate on what the teacher was saying, but just like in the days before, Edward's presence not two feet away from me held my attention without effort. There was the same sort of humming electricity between our bodies that I had felt yesterday, but today there was something new accompanying it, an ache deep in my chest to touch him, to make contact with his skin. It was not painful but surprisingly pleasant. It felt more like a longing that was pulling at me from deep inside my heart, almost like a physical need to be in contact with him. _Needless to say, I will be borrowing Angela's notes tomorrow_ , I thought at the end of the lesson when I realized that not a word from the lecture had registered in my mind.

I was excused from participating in gym class, but I still had to attend and sit on the bleachers while Coach Clapp arranged yet another game of dodge ball. I also took great pleasure in watching Edward. His movements were so graceful that I saw nothing else but him. It didn't take me long to realize that it was not the best of things, as not ten minutes into the game I felt something hit me on the side of my head.

"Ouch!" I jumped in my seat, surprised and hurt as the ball that had hit my head fell between the seats and rolled away. My eyes instinctively flew to Edward, but he was on the other side of the gymnasium, being held back by his brothers. He was absolutely furious.

"Oh, sorry, _Bella_ , didn't mean to hit you." Lauren's overly sweet tone came from next to me as she came to pick up the ball.

There was no real regret in either her tone or her expression. I watched her go back to her friends and was shocked to see Jessica hiding a smile. _I guess Jessica has finally shown her true colors,_ I thought with a pang of hurt. I was never really close to her, but I did think of her as a friend.

"Are you okay, Miss Swan?" Coach Clapp asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I answered. The ball was of the soft sort, and the blow shocked me more than it had hurt me.

I returned my gaze to Edward and saw that his face was slowly calming down. He gave me a pained look and mouthed, "I'm sorry."

It took me a moment to understand.

"It's okay," I whispered, knowing that he would hear me. "It's not like you could have run across the gym and reached me without exposing yourself." I smiled at him. "And I am fine, honestly."

I saw him glance at Jasper and receive a short nod in response. _What was that all about?_

Edward then looked back at me and gave me a smile of his own.

A moment later, I had to mask my laugh with a cough when I saw the ball hit Edward. It was all too obvious to me that he did so deliberately that I was wondering how no one else had noticed it.

"I'm sorry I couldn't get to you in time," he murmured when he sat down next to me.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm fine. Stop worrying so much. You'll get wrinkles," I teased.

He rolled his eyes but I saw a smile play on his lips.

"By the way, what was with that glance you just gave Jasper?" I asked.

"I wanted to know how you were feeling."

"I told you I was—"

"Fine, I know," he cut me off. "But you have a tendency to downplay." Edward shrugged. "I wanted to be certain."

He brought his hand to my face and tucked a loose strain of hair back behind my ear. He threaded his fingers through my hair and left his hand over my shoulder. The short contact of his finger with my cheek was enough to have me blushing and my heartbeat racing.

We didn't speak after that, but his hand remained on my shoulder for the rest of the class.

When the bell rang, Edward went to the locker room to change and handed me over to Alice. I groaned at the prospect of being babysat, but Alice's glowing smile was impossible to resist.

"Your father is going to be late tonight. Why don't you call him and say that you're coming over to our place for the afternoon?" she suggested and handed me her cell phone. "Don't worry, he will not object when you tell him that I am the one that invited you."

I dialed Charlie's work number and waited for him to pick up.

"Chief Swan."

"Hi Dad, how's work?"

"Bella? Is everything OK? What are you doing home so early?"

"Everything is fine Cha—Dad," I stuttered. _He's such a worrywart sometimes._ "I'm calling from a friend's cell."

"Which friend?" Charlie's tone turned suspicious in an instant.

"Alice Cullen," I said. "She invited me over after school, and I wanted to let you know so that you wouldn't worry."

"Cullen? Is she one of Dr. Cullen's foster kids?"

"Yes."

"Is he going to be home?"

Alice nodded.

"Yes, Dad, he'll be there to supervise and make sure I don't break anything," I teased.

"Okay, kiddo." Charlie chuckled. "I'll be home later tonight, so I'm glad you won't be alone," he said. "Have fun and be safe."

I smiled. Even if he was being a little over protective, I knew he was doing so out of love for me. "I will, Dad. Have a good shift."

"I'll try. Bye, Bells."

"Bye, Dad."

I handed the phone back to Alice after hanging up. "Looks like I'm all yours for the afternoon." I smiled.

"I would have to share you with Edward." She frowned a little, and it looked adorable on her small features. "But it would be nice to have some girl time in a house full of males," she said as we walked out of the gym and toward of the parking lot.

"What about Esme?" I asked.

Alice suddenly had a huge grin on her face.

"What?" I looked at her curiously. "Tell me, please."

She shook her head and held on to the grin. "Come on, Edward is losing his patience."

I shot a glare in her direction, which only earned me a fit of giggles, and dropped the subject.

w.W.w

I had a wonderful time with Alice that afternoon. Edward never left my side, but he seemed comfortable enough to let Alice take over and keep me occupied. Esme had insisted on cooking for me. She even pulled out the 'I miss the human experience' card on me, so I couldn't say anything other than thank you.

It amazed me that she was able to produce something that was delicious without being able to taste it. She said that all she did was to follow the instructions in the cookbook, and I thought that it must have been one hell of a good cookbook.

I did, however, learn why Alice had implied that Esme wasn't a good partner for girl time. All it took was paying a little attention and for Carlisle to walk into the room. They did everything they could not to meet each other's gaze, while doing just that—looking at each other like a pair of lovesick teenagers.

"What's going on with Esme and Carlisle?" I asked Edward on the drive home. "They are worse than a couple of teenagers." I giggled.

"You've noticed that, huh?" Edward asked with a smirk.

"It was a little hard _not_ to."

"Yeah, I guess you're right, although Jasper had a lot of fun with the two of them around."

"Are you going to answer me, or are you going to keep evading the question?" I raised a brow.

"Well, there is _something_ going on..." he trailed off.

"I knew it!"

He chuckled. "As you've mentioned before, it _is_ pretty obvious."

"And...?"

"And...what?" He smiled innocently.

"And...you're not going to tell me anything." I frowned.

"Nope," he said and chuckled when I huffed.

I had barely enough time to notice that we were already in the driveway to my house and that Edward had stepped out of the car before he appeared next to the passenger side of the care and opened the door for me. "May I carry you to the door?"

"Shouldn't it be 'May I escort you to the door?'" I asked with a smile.

"It should have been." He smirked. "But I like having you in my arms too much."

_That smirk is going to be the death of me,_ I thought and felt my cheeks warm up and my knees weaken.

Edward gently picked me up and carried me to the front door. He waited until I opened the door—not letting me down—and continued to carry me up the stairs to my room.

"I thought I'd save you the trouble of tackling the stairs," he said in response to my unspoken question.

"Thanks." I smiled.

"Are you sure you don't want me to stay until your father returns?" he asked with a small frown of his own.

"Positive," I answered confidently. "And no stalking!" I added, jokingly.

The expression on his face made me want to kick myself; it was a mixture of guilt and sadness. "As you wish," he murmured.

"Hey, stop that." I raised a hand and placed it on his cheek. I was slowly growing more comfortable with touching him in this way, and the humming sensation that accompanied the contact was overpowering any discomfort I might have felt due to the temperature of his skin. "I don't like seeing you sad."

He leaned into my touch and closed his eyes for a moment, breathing deeply. "I will do my best," he said when he opened his eyes and looked at me. His eyes still held a little sadness but the smile playing on his lips was real.

"That's better."

He went to the door and turned to look at me. "Good night, Bella."

"Good night, Edward." I smiled at him.

w.W.w

During the weekend, Edward and his family went out for a hunting trip, and the two days that we had spent apart were the longest ones since I had moved to Forks. Charlie went on a fishing trip with Billy, so I tried to fill my time with chores and homework.

I was happy to see Edward's car in my driveway on Monday morning. My ankle was no longer hurting, but the car-rides to and from school did not appear to have stopped. The classes flew by me, and I actually tried to pay attention in class. I did not sit with Jessica and her group of friends because of the gym incident. There was a lot of gossiping when I first sat down at the Cullen's table for lunch, but as the week progressed, it too died out and people moved on to the next new piece of news.

After school, I would spend time with Edward and his family at their house. It had become somewhat of a routine, with Alice, Jasper and Emmett keeping us company. I had really enjoyed my time with them, even if Emmett was hell bent on teasing me to death.

Esme and Carlisle seemed to be growing closer with every passing day, but neither said anything to make it official. It was beyond obvious to us all that they were in love. I just hoped that they had confided in each other; eternity was too long a time to be spending it shrouded in ignorance.

On some afternoons, Edward would take me to my house and sit by me in the kitchen while I did my homework and cooked dinner. He always left before Charlie came home; I was _not_ ready to have the "I have a boyfriend" talk with Charlie.

Edward had stayed true to his word—although I couldn't really test him on it—and stayed away from my bedroom at night. Some might have said that it was stupid to so easily trust in someone who had not only been stalking you but was a vampire to boot, but I did.

I was growing uneasy as the weekend approached. I did not know whether or not the Cullens would be going away on another one of their "camping" trips, and I wasn't sure how to approach the subject.

Edward hadn't left my side throughout the entire week, so I couldn't catch Alice in private to ask her about it, and I wasn't feeling comfortable with asking Edward. On one hand, I didn't want to appear clingy, but on the other, I really didn't want to spend the weekend without him.

I knew what was going on. I was neither blind nor stupid. I smiled whenever he did, I felt uneasy if he wasn't in the room, I dreamed about him more often than I would have liked to admit, and I was happier than I had been in a long time.

I was in love with Edward, and it scared the hell out of me.

w.W.w

"So, I heard you have a birthday next week."

It was Friday, dangerously close to the dreaded weekend, and Edward was driving me home after another afternoon with the Cullens when he suddenly dropped that bomb on me.

I groaned. I was hoping he wasn't aware of the date. "I do," I admitted. "But please don't make a fuss about it. I hate when people make a big deal out of my birthday," I begged.

"It's not me you should be worrying about," he said with a chuckle.

"Alice." I groaned again. "What did she do this time?"

"Nothing, _yet_."

"I don't like the sound of that."

Edward had a smirk on his lips but kept quiet.

"Edward? What did Alice do?" I had several possible scenarios lined up, each worse than the next. When Edward smirked again and winked, I dropped my face to my hands and groaned again.

Edward laughed. "Come on Bella, it's not that bad."

"No, it's worse than bad. It's _terrible_ ," I mumbled, not looking up. I hated being the center of attention, and I really didn't like people spending too much money on me. With Alice involved, whatever it was she had planned would include both of those.

"It's only a small party at our house, just the family. Alice said that Charlie would like to take you to dinner on the day of your birthday, but on the weekend you two are having a birthday sleepover."

"A birthday sleepover?" I stared at Edward. "That's all?" It actually did not sound as bad as I had imagined.

Edward didn't answer. He suddenly became very interested in the road in front of us, and I knew that wasn't all of it.

_Of course, Alice would not settle for something small when she can have a large party._

A pang of guilt hit me at that thought. Alice did not remember anything from her human life and celebrating birthdays wasn't something that vampires usually did. The actual number of years since their birth might have accumulated, but they weren't actually aging, hence the lack of celebrations. Therefore, my birthday would be the only way for her to experience a birthday party.

_It doesn't have to be so bad,_ I tried to comfort myself. I gave it a little more thought and decided that as long as Alice kept it small—small as in no one but the Cullens attending and no expensive gifts allowed —then I could live with it.

As soon as Edward parked the car in my driveway, my door was opened and a pair of stone arms hugged me so tight I thought I heard my ribs crack.

"Oh, Bella, thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

"Can't...breathe," I tried to say.

Alice immediately released me. "Sorry." She smiled sheepishly. "Thank you for letting me throw a birthday party for you! You won't regret it, I promise!"

She was smiling so brightly that I immediately felt bad for even _wanting_ to deny her _anything_. "Just keep it simple and no expensive presents!" I said with as much sternness as I could muster.

"Define expensive." The request came from behind Alice.

I looked up to see Edward watching me with a thoughtful expression on his face. It took me several seconds to understand what he was referring to. "You are _not_ allowed to buy me a new car." I glared at him.

The sour expression that crossed his face confirmed my suspicion that he was contemplating doing just that.

He glanced at my truck and then at me, his eyes pleading.

"No," I insisted, but my voice was not nearly as strong as I wanted it to be.

"Fine, no new cars, I promise," Edward conceded, rolling his eyes.

I laughed when I saw Alice sticking her tongue out at him and Edward glaring at her in response. I didn't need to guess in order to know why Alice was gloating. "And no foreign designer clothes either, Alice," I warned her. Having spent so much time with Alice I was well aware of her obsession with clothes and fashion.

"Not even for your birthday party dress?" Alice asked, pouting. Her golden eyes were shining with unshed tears, and while I was fully aware that she was manipulating me, I still felt bad for causing that kind of expression to come up on her face.

"Don't do this to me, Alice," I begged. "You know I can't resist that pout."

"Yay!" She broke into a smile. "I promise I won't go too over the top with your dress, but it _will_ be a dress, and you _have to_ wear it for your party."

"Fine, Alice. You win."

"I always do," she said with another gloating smirk toward Edward and danced her way to her car—a bright yellow sports car that was parked on the curb.

"And no gloating at Edward!" I called after her. "Or our deal is off." That gained me a tongue-sticking of my own before she jumped into the driver seat and started her car.

"What have I just agreed to?" I mumbled under my breath, watching the bright yellow car disappear from view.

"I think you've agreed to have a birthday party thrown in your honor, complete with guests, cake, and presents," Edward answered me.

I bit my lip and furrowed my forehead. _What am I getting myself into?_

"Don't worry, Bella. We will try to rein Alice in, I promise." He placed a comforting hand over my shoulders, squeezing me lightly. The pleasant humming sensation coursed through my entire body, and all thoughts regarding Alice and my birthday party flew out the window.

I looked up at him and felt myself relax as soon as our eyes locked. I drowned in the golden pools of his eyes and for a moment forgot how to breathe.

"Come on, you have homework to do."

That brought me right back to the ground, breaking the Edward-induced trance I was in. "Fine," I muttered and let him lead me inside.

w.W.w

**Edward**

After Sam's departure, Carlisle and I returned home to fill everyone in on the events of the evening, including the true identity of the rogue vampire. It was not a surprise that Aro had sent his spies after me; it was only the short period of time that it had taken him that I found to be peculiar.

"Aro was never a patient man," I said, "but even for him it seems a little too soon."

We were sitting around the dining room, around a table that was only recently placed here and was now used as a makeshift conference room. Carlisle sat at the head of the table with Esme to his right, Alice next to her with Jasper standing behind her chair, and Emmett on Carlisle's right. I was pacing the room, thinking.

"When was the last time you spoke to him?" Carlisle asked.

"Almost two years ago," I answered. "I called him about two months after leaving Italy and asked to be relieved of my duties."

Esme raised her brow. _I wouldn't have put it quite that way_ , she thought _._

Emmett's reaction was much less subtle; he snorted and muttered, "Asked, my ass."

"Fine, I didn't _ask_ Aro." I rolled my eyes at the two. "I _told_ him that I wasn't coming back and sent him back my black robes."

"With a note saying 'the answer is no'," Emmett added, grinning widely. "Yeah, you never did say what the question was." He was always curious about that and was now seeing an opportunity to satisfy his desire.

I contemplated on whether I should answer or evade, but Alice showed me that each time I decided on a course of action that included avoiding, I still ended up telling them. _You might as well just tell them and save us the time_ , she thought, smiling.

"A few years before I left, Aro came to me with an offer," I began, begrudgingly. "He wanted me to join the brothers, formally."

"What do you mean join them 'formally'? Weren't you already a member of the Volturi?" Jasper asked.

"I was a member, yes, but not by choice. I was brought in; I didn't join them by choice," I explained. "Aro wanted me to make it official. He wanted the Binding Oath."

"A Binding Oath?" Emmett asked. "What's that?"

Carlisle was reminiscing his time in Italy and the books he had studied, searching for information but coming up empty.

"The official story is that it is a public declaration of loyalty, a promise to serve the Volturi for a period of a thousand years," I explained.

"And the unofficial story?" Jasper asked.

"Unofficially, if performed correctly, it would form an eternal link between the three ruling brothers and the bound vampire, one breakable only by death of one of the parties involved," I said. "Once the link is established, Aro, Marcus, and Caius can command the vampire to do anything they wish, and the vampire is physically unable to disobey."

"How did you find this information?" Carlisle asked, shocked that despite having been through the entire library in Italy, he had never come across anything like that.

"By accident and from an unlikely source," I said. "But let's just say that male vampires are prone to the same weaknesses as human males."

_Sex,_ Jasper thought.

I gave him a smile and a small nod.

"I'm guessing Aro did not give you all the details," Carlisle said.

"He didn't," I confirmed. "He added a prize in the form of a throne for me."

"He wanted to make you his equal?" Jasper asked, clearly shocked. He may not have met the Volturi in person, but through his involvement in The Southern Wars, he was well acquainted with their dislike for others gaining power; they considered it a personal threat and acted to eliminate it.

"No, he wanted me to _believe_ that he intended on making me a fourth ruler," I said. "Once the ritual was done, he would have simply ordered me to never mention the promise, and I would have no choice but obey."

_Now that sounds more like the Volturi I know_ , Jasper thought, _cunning and ruthless._

"I only learned the information about the true nature of the oath just before leaving Italy, up until then I was considering a positive reply."

Esme gasped in shock. She knew that I was in a bad shape during the end on my time with the Volturi and that I was depressed. She knew that I hated my time with them and that I had left once.

_You would not have survived a thousand years with the Volturi and you know that. A positive answer means only one thing—you were looking for a way to end your own existence. Was it really that bad?_ Her thoughts were filled with grief and guilt over not calling me sooner.

"Esme, you did everything right, you didn't know," I told her. "Yes, it was bad, but I had you to save me."

Emmett didn't say anything; he knew most of the story, having lived with Esme and me for two years.

Jasper was curious, but due to his experience and his ability to read my emotions, his guess was fairly close to the truth. I nodded at him to confirm his thoughts, and he gave me a nod in return.

Carlisle was full of concern for Esme and placed a supporting hand on her shoulder. Esme leaned into him for comfort, and I smiled at the sight of the two of them interacting.

"How _did_ you come by that information?" Carlisle asked me.

"Francesca," I said. "She took the oath after joining the Volturi without knowing the full ramifications. We were in a...compromising position." I knew that I wasn't fooling anyone with my euphemism—Emmett's chuckle told me that even without hearing his thoughts—but there were still enough traces of propriety left in me to prevent me from being blunt in front of Alice and Esme. "When I had learned what taking the oath truly meant for her."

My mind went back to my last day in Italy. Francesca showed up in my room just as I was getting out of the shower. After bringing me to a climax with her mouth, she wondered if I was about to leave her unsatisfied.

At the time, I thought her low opinion of me might have come from rumors, but after I sent her away and went for a second shower, I heard something that raised my alarm bells. Francesca was comparing her experience with me to her experiences with Aro. From her memories, I saw how sometimes Aro's voice took a different undertone as he commanded her. He had used her as a sex toy, with no regard to her own needs, and she was wondering why she was unable to refuse him.

My mind made the connection very quickly.

She was the obvious choice for Aro to send as a spy; her loyalty was unbreakable. _Too bad he could not order her not to think about her mission_ , I thought.

"Did Aro call you after receiving your note?" Carlisle asked, steering the conversation back to the subject at hand.

"No. But I did not expect him to," I confessed. "I thought the insult had been enough for him to leave me alone for at least a decade or two."

_I still want the details about that 'compromising position'_. Emmett gave me a pointed glare.

Alice smirked when she saw a vision of Emmett chasing me out of the house and trying to wrestle the information out of me. Truthfully, I had to hide my own chuckle as well.

_What's so funny?_ Jasper wondered looking between Alice and myself.

I looked at Emmett pointedly and then back to Jasper.

_Emmett...I should have known._

"Well, Francesca's death should give us about a month and a half to two months before Aro begins to suspect that something had happened to her," Carlisle mused and looked at Alice for confirmation.

She nodded.

"But that would lead him to think I might have caught her and killed her and result in him sending more of the guard after me," I said. "I think I might have a way around that one."

"And it's a plan that's going to work," Alice chimed in.

I smiled before explaining, "On her last report, Aro accused Francesca of not trying hard enough to find me. I would use that against him. I can call Alec and mention to him that I ran across Francesca while I was travelling and feed him some false information about my whereabouts. The next time Aro touches him, he would hear that and when Francesca fails to make contact, he would have no reason to suspect me as the cause."

_Simple but elegant. I like it_ , Jasper thought.

We finished the meeting with telling everyone about the developments made with the wolves—specifically, Sam's reaction. Esme shared Carlisle's hope that this marked a change in our relations with the wolves. Jasper and I were more skeptical. He thought that it might be a step in the right direction, but the burden of proof lied with the wolves and until then, he would remain alert. Emmett was disappointed that his chances of testing his skills against a wolf seemed to have lessened significantly, and Alice thought about ways to work around the blind spots that the wolves created in her visions.

With that, the meeting was adjourned, and everyone scattered to their own activities around the house; Jasper and Emmett left to compete in a racing game, Alice joined them in the living room with her sketchpad, and Carlisle retired to the study.

I noticed the heated glance Carlisle and Esme exchanged when he mentioned the study and wondered what that was all about...I decided to ask Alice, but she dutifully concentrated on her sketch, purposefully blocking me.

_I guess I would have to find out of my own,_ I thought and let it rest for the time being.

"Esme, I'm taking Bella to a picnic tomorrow morning, and I was wondering if you could help me," I asked when once we were alone.

"Of course, what do you need?" she asked with a smile.

"I want to try doing the cooking myself, but I need your help and supervision over the process," I said. Esme had been the one that cooked for Bella from day one as the rest of us watched occasionally, and while I might have perfect recall, I would feel better knowing that Esme was watching over me.

"I would be happy to assist, Edward." She smiled. "Now tell me what did you have in mind, and we will go from there."

w.W.w

**Bella**

Edward left around seven on Friday evening, five minutes before Charlie arrived. Just as he was leaving, I finally mustered up the courage to ask him about the weekend.

"Do you have plans for the weekend?" It was meant to be a casual question, but it came out sounding really pathetic.

Edward smiled, and that made me feel much better. "Alice says that tomorrow is going to be sunny," he began, looking into my eyes with a newfound intensity. "I thought that a picnic might be a nice idea. If you'd like."

"I would love to," I breathed, barely able to remember how to speak with him being so close and looking at me like that.

"I'll pick you up around nine?"

I nodded. "I'll be ready."

He hesitated for a moment and parted his lips as though he was going to say something, but then he seemed to change his mind at the last minute. "I'll take care of everything. Just make sure you dress comfortably."

"No problem."

We stood there, just looking at each other, for an immeasurable moment before he finally broke the silence. "Charlie is just around the corner. I better go."

I nodded, not wanting him to leave but not wanting Charlie to find me alone in the house with a boy.

Edward leaned closer, and his eyes dropped to my lips. For a moment, I forgot how to breathe. _Is he going to kiss me?_

I didn't know if I should feel disappointed or not when all he did was place a feather-like kiss on my forehead and whisper, "Have a good night, my Bella," before going out of the door.

I stood there, transfixed, and watched the front door for several minutes before the sound of Charlie's cruiser parking in the driveway brought me out of my stupor.

I busied myself with making dinner while Charlie sat in the living room, going over case-files that he brought home. We spent dinner in comfortable silence. Charlie was never big on words, and I did not feel like sharing my thoughts.

If Charlie thought it was odd that I went to bed early on a weekend night, he didn't say anything, and I was grateful for it. I took a long shower, deep in thought. I was replaying each moment of our parting conversation in my mind. I was so preoccupied that I hadn't noticed that I was washing my hair for the second time until the shampoo was already applied.

I had to laugh at myself. _Since when am I so preoccupied with whether a boy wanted to kiss me or not?_ I knew the answer as soon as the question was formed in my thoughts. _Since Edward showed up in my life._

w.W.w

I woke up around eight thirty in the morning, just a minute or so before my alarm clock. If I had any dreams that night, I didn't remember them, but at least there were no more nightmares.

I dressed in a comfortable pair of khaki pants that had tons of pockets and a white long-sleeved shirt. The weather was still cloudy, and although it didn't seem too chilly, I tied a dark-green sweatshirt around my waist just in case I got cold. The outfit was probably a little on the casual side, but Edward did say to dress comfortably—so that's what I did.

I was deciding between my hiking boots and my sneakers when I heard my cell phone ring to indicate a new text.

_Wear the hiking boots._

I smiled as I read Alice's message and went to put on the hiking boots that Charlie insisted on buying for me at the beginning of last year. It was before he realized that I was way too clumsy to even attempt a camping trip.

I brushed my hair and pulled it up in a ponytail—simple but effective. I was done just in time to hear a knock on the front door.

"Just a minute," I called and made my way down the stairs carefully, holding the railing to prevent a possible fall. I did not want to spoil the day by spraining my ankle again...or breaking something.

I smiled hugely when I opened the door to see Edward standing on my front porch. He was dressed in a similar pair of khaki pants and white long-sleeved shirt.

"Hi," I said, giggling.

"Good morning." He returned the smile.

"Alice?" I asked with a raised brow.

"No, I am perfectly capable of dressing myself, thank you." He winked at me, letting me know he wasn't actually offended. "Are you ready to leave?"

"Almost, come in," I said and stepped aside. "I'll be right back."

Edward closed the door behind him, and I went up to my room to pick up my cell phone and wallet, stuffing them in my pockets.

From the note Charlie left for me earlier that morning, I knew that he was due back home around noon and that Billy was coming with him. They were going to watch the game and order pizza, so I didn't need to worry about dinner.

"Edward? What time are we going to be back?" I asked from the top of the stairs, wondering whether I needed to leave a note of my own for Charlie.

"You'll be back before dinner," he answered from his place, leaning on the wall at the bottom of the stairs. He seemed different somehow, as if there was something bothering him.

"Okay, in that case, I'm ready." I smiled and went downstairs. I tried not to worry about his expression as I locked the door behind us and we went to his car.

As always, he opened the door for me before getting in himself. He kept quiet as we drove away. I watched his face from the corner of my eye, trying not to be too conspicuous about it. He looked worried.

"Is everything OK?" I asked after several minutes of silence, unable to ignore the pink elephant in the room any longer.

Edward turned to look at me for a moment. "Yes, of course," he said, smiling.

The smile was genuine, but I still couldn't get rid of the ominous feeling that I had deep in my stomach.

"There is no need to be worried, Bella," he added after several moment of silence.

I wasn't convinced but decided to drop the subject. _Edward is entitled to his own secrets,_ I reminded myself. I tried very hard not to let the pang of hurt show in my face. I wanted Edward to trust me with his secrets, but I supposed that we weren't there just yet.

* * *

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	24. Trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Edward**

I was worried about the reaction Bella would have to the things I had to tell her. I would have to start with finding out exactly how much she knew about the Quileutes. I speculated that she had already found out about the werewolves. Bella being as observant as she was and the things I had heard in Jacob's mind led me to think so. That would be the easy part of our conversation.

The hard part would be telling her about Rosalie without making me sound like a lunatic. Hell, if I hadn't seen the memories in their minds, I would have thought both Carlisle and Esme were nuts when they told me about it.

Also, I didn't really know how to approach the subject. Even knowing that the things Rosalie had shown me had not actually happened—or at least, not in this timeline—I still felt sick when I recalled the images.

_And where should I start, anyway? Should I start with Carlisle and Esme's first sight of her? With Alice's vision of the family that had not come to be? Or maybe I should start with Alice's theory about the different timeline..._

When all that was done, I still had to tell Bella about Francesca and her mission and the plan that I had come up with to keep Aro from finding out that I was on to her. I didn't want to scare her, but I wanted to share my thoughts with her. Bella might not be my equal in terms of physical strength, but she was my equal in every other sense that mattered. More than that, she was my mate, and I wanted to confide in her and to have her confide in me. There could not be a relationship without trust, and trust couldn't truly exist if one of us still kept secrets from the other.

_I would just have to find the right words._

w.W.w

Esme had been of great help with preparing the food for the picnic. I hadn't burned anything, a fact for which I was immensely and ridiculously proud of myself, and I had even learned several new tricks in the kitchen. Alice advised me to take two blankets; one for us to sit on, and the other for Bella because while it would be sunny, the wind would still be fairly chilly.

Emmett tried to put his two cents in and threw me a box of condoms—which earned him a murderous glare from me and giggles from the girls.

"I would have asked you why you have such a thing to begin with, but I'm not sure I want to know the answer," I said and threw the box back at him. He caught it with ease. "But I _can_ tell you that I won't be needing it."

"Didn't anyone ever teach you about safe sex?" He threw the box back at me, but I didn't catch it. "No glove no love."

I rolled my eyes at the expression. "It's impossible for a vampire to have STDs, and you know it Emmett," I scolded. "I can't get her pregnant either, so what's your point?" I folded my hands over my chest and glared at him.

"So you _are_ planning on having sex with her," he said smugly.

"I never said that." I replied in a calm voice, but my glare turned murderous again.

Jasper, Alice, and Esme were having a blast watching us, and Carlisle's mind wondered at the effects the venom would have on a human partner during intercourse.

"So you aren't planning on having sex with her? What are you, gay?"

I rolled my eyes again and heard Jasper stifling a chuckle. "Are you so eager to have your little sister defiled?"

Emmett paused. He did think of Bella as a little sister; he seemed to forget that in his eternal quest to rattle me about my sex life—or the lack thereof.

"I thought so." I was pleased. "I'm going out for a run, see you later," I said to no one in particular and left the house through the back door.

There were still several hours before I would have to go and pick Bella up. Emmett's presence guaranteed that I would not be able to spend those hours thinking in peace as I had wanted, so I ran to the forest. I always did my best thinking when I was alone and outside.

Twenty minutes later, I found myself sitting on the same tree as I did when Rosalie showed me those flashbacks. The sun had yet to rise, but the night was already receding and the sky was lightening up. I still had so many unanswered questions, and I did not like being in the dark, figuratively speaking of course.

My mind replayed the flashbacks in my head involuntary—not a hard feat when you have perfect recall—but it brought up even more questions.

What happened with Jasper that both of them refer to as 'nothing'? Clearly, it was anything but nothing. Bella seemed certain that it was the catalyst behind Edward's decision to leave her. The words he had used, " _It was exactly what was to be expected,_ " didn't leave much room for doubt in my mind. After adding all the facts together, I speculated that there must have been some kind of an incident where Jasper had tried to attack Bella, possibly because she was bleeding from an open wound. Anything less, and Jasper would have been able to deal with it.

I wondered how the Edward from that timeline handled being near her blood when it was freshly spilled. Was he able to stop Jasper before he could harm Bella? Obviously, Jasper was not able to bite her, seeing as she was human in the flashback, but that did not necessarily exclude other forms of injury.

And then there was the Phoenix reference. Why would a vampire go to Phoenix, Arizona, of all places? With all that sun, he wouldn't have been able to go outside during the day. Was he taking Bella for a vacation? No, that wouldn't make sense; he would have chosen either something a little less sunny for their vacation or a little more private.

_So, why go to Phoenix?_

Bella was not the type to run away from him. She loved him too much to do that; the heartbroken expression that she had on her face when he broke up with her indicated that she loved him with her whole heart.

_But Bella_ would _run away if she thought she was protecting someone_.

I loved Bella, but that did not turn me blind to her faults. As amazing as her selflessness was, it could lead to her doing stupid things. If she thought that by running away she would save someone she loved—a family member, most likely—then she would do it.

_So Bella ran away. Edward must have followed her, and then what?_

Judging from his reaction to a possible injury inflicted by Jasper, I thought that it was a more than likely possibility that Bella's attempt to run away had resulted in some kind of injury as well.

_So Bella was injured twice; the second time involved a vampire—Jasper—so it is not farfetched to assume that the first time did, too._

Thinking about it calmly, I could see a pattern forming. As Bella gradually became more involved in Edward's world—my world—she was constantly exposed to danger. A weaker man would have thought that leaving her would protect her from the danger the vampire world poses to humans. Something else that he had said to her during their conversation also clicked into place; " _My world is not for you_ ". That supported my conclusion.

_So he left her because he tried to protect her..._

It was a stupid thing to do. He would have been able to protect her better by _staying_ and doing what a man should do, not running away like a scared schoolgirl.

_But if he did leave her to protect her..._

The favor he had asked at the end of their conversation suddenly made sense; he had asked her to stay safe. It was the only time during the entire exchange when I noticed his eyes become alive.

"He did care for her, he just had a stupid way of showing it to her," I said aloud and huffed. I dropped down from the tree branches where I had been sitting and looked toward the horizon, in the direction of Bella's house. "I would never do that to you, my Bella."

"That's good to hear."

Rosalie's voice came from behind me, but I did not turn to look at her.

"Is this a hobby of yours? Showing up and disturbing people?" I asked, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"When people need disturbance, yes," she answered.

"Well, I do not require your services, so you can go back to where you came from."

"That's exactly what I'm trying to do," Rosalie said. I didn't hear her move, but I saw her walking to stand in front of me as she spoke. "I'm trying to go back to where I came from, and you're going to help me do it."

"If you want me to kill you, all you really need to do is ask." I chuckled.

"I'm already dead, you idiot."

"Well, you are awfully annoying for someone who's already dead."

"So are you," she spat back.

"If I'm annoying you so much, you can just leave, you know," I shrugged.

"I thought you were looking for answers." She tilted her head to the side and raised her brow. "Were you not?"

"As far as I can remember, you're not in the habit of supplying those." I copied her posture, including her raised brow. "Are you?"

"You are much more fun this time around." She chuckled; the sound was disturbingly ominous.

"So forget going back. Stick around. You might find that you like it here," I teased, unable to stop myself. It was really too easy to get a reaction out of her.

"I wish I could stick around," she said.

She looked deflated, and I felt a pang of guilt for a moment, for hurting a lady. _I guess old habits dies heard_ , I thought. "Why can't you?"

"I may be dead, but I'm not a living dead like you are," she said. "I have lived a human life that ended decades ago; but after I had died, instead of leaving this existence, I was brought back."

"Back where?"

"To a place that is between life and death," she replied vaguely. "I can't really say more than that."

"So what, you're stuck?"

"In a way, yes, I am."

"What does that have to do with me, then?"

"Like I told Carlisle and Esme, you and Bella are the key. I am forbidden from saying more than that." She seemed to be struggling against a physical force when she spoke, as if there was something trying to gag her.

"We are the key? Well that's a lot of help," I muttered under my breath.

"There is also a time limit—"

"I know," I cut her off. "The end of the second week of March; you've said that already. Why that specific date, though?" I continued with that train of thought, and another speculation came to mind. "Is that the day Bella died?"

"Not only Bella," she answered.

I recalled the scene in the Volturi throne room that she had showed me on our last meeting, and a chill ran down my spine. "They all died on the same day?"

"Within less than twenty four hours of each other," she answered.

"Well, I'm not planning on committing suicide any time soon, so I think you're safe on that part." I thought about the conclusions I had reached earlier. "Nor am I planning on leaving Bella, so there won't be a reason for her to do the same, either."

"That's a start." Rosalie nodded in approval.

"What more is there?"

I saw her opening her mouth but no sound came out. She tried several more times but then shook her head in defeat. "I can't tell you."

"So why did you come here tonight?" My tone was much softer now. Something about the expression on her face touched me, told me that she was really suffering and that the arrogant act was just that—an act.

"I needed to tell you something."

"I'm listening."

"Don't underestimate Bella. She is much stronger than you think."

"I know," I said.

"Good. But on the other hand, take things slow."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked. Was she seriously implying what I thought she was implying?

Rosalie laughed. This time the sound was a pleasant one. "Not what you think it means." She smiled. "When you're telling her about me and about the incident with Francesca, take things slowly. Bella is prone to taking the blame on herself, even for things that have nothing to do with her."

"Oh, okay. Thanks, I guess," I said sheepishly.

"Sure." A wicked expression came to her face; it oddly resembled Emmett's when he was about to say something that would positively land him in trouble. "And do go easy on the girl; she is a virgin after all." She winked and disappeared.

"What is it with people sticking their noses in my sex life?" I shouted to the empty forest.

There was no answer, not that I was expecting one; but with Rosalie appearing out of the blue, I was not about to pass anything off.

I stayed outside for another hour after that, organizing my thoughts and coming up with a plan. I always felt better when I had a concrete plan. When I was finally calm, I made my way back to the house for a shower and a change of clothes.

w.W.w

I chose a remote meadow for our picnic. It was several minutes' drive away from Forks and with several miles of hiking off the road after that. It was secluded and far from any known hiking trail, perfect for having a private conversation. Also, it would be sunny and in this time of year. The meadow would be lush green with vegetation—a setting that I was hoping would be serene and have a calming effect on my nerves.

I hated to admit it, even to myself, but I _was_ worried. Even though I knew what I wanted to say, a nagging voice in the back of my head kept reminding me of what happens to the best-laid plans and that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

"Is everything okay?" Bella asked after several minutes of silent drive.

I turned to look at her briefly and smiled. "Yes, of course."

I could see that she was examining my face carefully, and I knew that she had picked up on my mood. "There is no need to be worried, Bella," I said. I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was not convinced, but she did not push any further, and I was grateful for it.

We spent the rest of the drive in silence. It was not uncommon for us to have long pauses in our conversation. Neither one of us felt as though we needed to fill in the quiet with words. It was one of the things I liked about Bella, the serenity that I felt whenever I was with her.

I parked on the gravel about half a mile off the highway. The sky was beginning to clear but the air was still chilly, just like Alice had said.

I helped Bella out of the car and took out the small picnic basket I had packed earlier along with the blankets.

"What's all that?" Bella asked when I closed the trunk of the car and appeared next to her.

"That's your breakfast and a blanket for us to sit on," I said. "I did promise to take you on a picnic, did I not?"

She chuckled. "Yeah, I seem to remember something like that," she teased. "But where are we going?" she asked, looking around at the surrounding forest.

"There's a meadow about five miles from here, in that direction." I nodded toward the trees. "We can either hike there, or I could show you how I travel through the forest." I tried to keep my voice neutral, but deep down inside I wanted her to choose the latter. Partly because it would be faster that way and we would have more time to spend in the meadow, but mostly it was because I wanted to feel her in my arms again.

"Well, considering my previous escapades on perfectly plain surfaces..." Bella winked at me. "I think I'll give your method a go."

I chuckled. "You do seem to have a problem with those," I teased her back. I loved the fact that she was able to handle me teasing her and tease me right back. It was easier that way. Not having to walk on eggshells around her was a relief.

I took the picnic basket and the blankets in my left hand and scooped Bella up, placing my right hand around her back and my left under her knees.

She let out a squeal, and her arms tightened around my neck. "A warning would have been nice." She tried to keep her face straight but was unable to keep the smile away and I knew she wasn't really upset.

"I prefer to surprise you," I answered. "Now, hold on tight, and you might want to close your eyes—we will be going pretty fast."

Bella tucked her head under my chin, and I was engulfed with her warmth and her sweet delicious scent. I still felt the venom pool inside my mouth, but that was only a secondary reaction to her proximity; the first had been a tightening in the pit of my stomach and a jolt of desire down my spine.

"Ready?" My tone was husky and heavy with emotion.

"Yes," Bella murmured.

I looked down at her face. She had her eyes tightly shut, and a beautiful pink tint to her cheeks.

"Here we go," I said, giving her a warning before I began running.

It took me ten minutes to get to the meadow, and I kept my pace at half of my usual speed, monitoring Bella's breathing and heartbeat closely. The last thing I wanted was for her to feel motion sickness. Another reason was that for the first time in my life, I was carrying something in my arms that was more important to me than my own existence.

"We're here," I whispered to Bella and gently lowered her to the ground, keeping my hand around her back for support. She wobbled a little, and I enjoyed feeling her body lean into mine. "How do you feel?"

Her answer was a brilliant smile, and I felt as though my own personal sun was shining down at me.

"I feel great, and it sure beats hiking." She giggled.

"I imagine it does."

I heard her gasp when she turned to look at the meadow behind her.

"It's beautiful," she whispered.

"Yes it is." I was looking at the way the sun was playing on her hair, bringing out the natural red highlights in it. Looking away, I quickly spread the blanket out for her to sit on and placed the basket in the corner. "Would you like to sit?" I offered her my hand.

"Why, thank you." She took my hand.

It never ceased to amaze me how she didn't seem to be bothered by the cold temperature of my hand.

I sat next to her, mimicking the posture that she had assumed—my legs folded to one side and leaning on my hand. Just at that moment, the sun chose to come out of the cloud cover, and Bella gasped.

I watched her face carefully for any sign of rejection, but all I could find was awe. I could never understand the reason as to why vampires sparkle in the sun light. Personally, I thought it made no sense from an evolutionary point of view, and I disliked seeing myself under direct sunlight. Seeing Bella's face as she looked at me—her eyes wide and her lips slightly parted—I forgot all of my previous thoughts on the subject. I would do anything that would put that kind of expression on her face.

"You're beautiful," she murmured under her breath. As soon as she realized what she had said, her hand flew to cover her mouth and her cheeks colored.

"I wouldn't put it quite like that." I laughed softly and saw her face flush even a deeper shade of red. "But thank you."

She rolled her eyes at me and scoffed. I watched her, fascinated, as her eyes roamed over my face and my hands. I suddenly felt self-conscious, another first for me.

"Would you like something to eat?" I asked, trying to divert her attention.

"I guess," she said absent-mindedly, her eyes focused on my hands and the shimmer of light reflecting off of them.

"Okay, then. First dish coming right up." I winked at her, enjoying her answering giggle.

I took out a bowl from the picnic basket and began assembling the dish. First in was the fruit salad—a mixture of strawberries, green apples, melon, papaya, and mango. I poured creamy yogurt over the salad, added in some granola and oats and topped it off with honey. The recipe was one of the simpler ones and I thought it would be a good place to start. The whole process took me less than five seconds, as I was using my natural speed to do it. I handed Bella the bowl with a spoon and said, "Bon appétit."

I busied myself with pouring her a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice while I listened for comments. I almost spilled the juice on the blanket when a few seconds later I heard Bella moan. The sound went straight to my loins and my eyes flew to her face. Her eyes were closed and she looked blissfully happy. _I wonder how her face would look like during an orgasm._ My thoughts were getting out of hand. I needed to distract myself—and fast!

Bella wasn't helping. She was completely unaware of what the sounds she was making did to me. It was both a blessing and a curse. My eyes were glued to her lips—her pink, wet, _luscious_ lips.

_Get a hold on yourself, Edward!_ I scolded myself and tried my best to take my mind out of the gutter.

I didn't dare to move for the entire time she ate. I was afraid that if I let myself move even an inch, Bella would find herself naked within less than thirty seconds, and I while I knew I could make her feel really good, I also knew it was still too soon.

I didn't even breathe until she finished the muesli and handed me the empty bowl.

"That was _delicious_ , Edward. Thank you," she said.

The small emphasis she put on the word delicious was my breaking point. Our eyes locked and I knew what she would be seeing, I could practically _feel_ my eyes growing darker. I reached for her face and cupped her cheek, my eyes holding her gaze. _Just a kiss,_ I thought, _I just want to taste her lips and then I would let her go._

The moment my lips met hers I was in paradise. She tasted like strawberries and _Bella_ —sweet with a tang of sourness. My lips moved carefully over hers, and her shocked gasp was lost inside my mouth. I moved my hand to hold the back of her head as I ravished her lips. She was so eager, so wonderfully desiring. Her reaction was so much more than I could have hoped for.

I pulled Bella closer to me until her chest was pressed against mine and I was lying on my back with her straddling me. Some part of my brain remembered that she was breakable and kept my touch light and gentle. I had one hand threaded in her hair and the other pressing her lower back to me. The heat of her body was like bathing in pure sunlight.

I tentatively caressed her lips with my tongue and was overjoyed to feel her lips part for me. I plunged in her mouth and breathed her in. I was drowning inside her, and I never wanted to come up for air. Unfortunately, Bella did need air, and I had to let go of her lips to allow her to breathe. I could not bring myself to stop kissing her, though. I nibbled on her jawline all the way to her earlobe and sucked it gently. The whimper I heard from her was like adding fuel to an already raging fire. I kissed down her throat to the base of her neck, where I could feel and see her pulse. There was no bloodlust in me; the only desire I had was for her body.

I felt Bella tugging gently on my hair and let out my own groan of pleasure. When my mouth left her neck, I was met with Bella's eager lips once again. This time there was no hesitation as she opened her mouth for me and sucked my tongue inside.

A new scent filled my nose at that moment. It was pure Bella, only much more concentrated. I moaned when I realized that it was the scent of her arousal. It was sweeter than the smell of her blood, and I wanted nothing more than to taste her at that moment.

I lowered my hand to cup her ass and press her harder against my crotch. I was already painfully hard, and her core was even warmer than the rest of her body. Bella's response was in the form of a small grind. Her body was instinctively searching for more friction.

I felt her tongue push against mine and attempted to enter my mouth. With the last traces of my sanity, I remembered my sharp teeth and stopped her tongue from reaching them. Keeping the action inside her mouth, our tongues moved in perfect synchronization, like an ancient dance that we had performed thousands of times before.

I loved hearing her moan and whimper, and when the scent of her arousal intensified after a moan of my own, I realized that she was enjoying my noises as well.

I kept my hands on her thighs, gently guiding her to move on top of me. I wanted to be inside her, to feel that heat surrounding me, but it was too much and was way too soon. Bella would regret it in hindsight and this was too important; I didn't want her regretting _anything_ we did together.

I was battling with myself for control and losing quickly. Every movement made by Bella brought the heated core of her body in direct contact with my erect cock. I fought the beast inside me to keep my hands on her thighs from pressing too hard and hurting her. _This is my mate. I would never cause her harm_ , I thought.

_Make her mine. Take her. Mark her._ The demon's words in my mind were not cruel but pleading. The vampire side in me wanted her just as much as the human male side. I wanted to mark her for all to see and _smell_.

"Oh God, Edward." Bella moaned, and the sound of her husky voice, thick with lust, was exactly what I needed to ground me.

I would give her as much pleasure as I could and take whatever gratification I could within the set boundaries.

_I will not take her body_ , I thought.

_This time_ , my inner vampire added.

_This time_ , I agreed. Honestly, I knew that there would come a time—soon—when I would not be holding myself back, and I saw no reason to deny it, not to myself.

"Yes, baby." I answered her in the same husky tone, colored with desire. The quiet whimper I got from her told me that she liked it. Bella was just as deep in the thrones of passion as I was. I returned to kissing her. Even the short time it took to say the words was too long for me to be apart from her lips.

I raised one hand to cup her breast through her shirt. I was rewarded with a deep guttural moan and a thrust of her hips over mine. It was my turn to call for God. I began massaging her breast, very gently tugging at the hardened peak with my fingers.

"That feels so good." She groaned into my mouth.

My hips thrust up in an involuntary response, and my hand tightened on her breast. I froze for the sixteenth of a second, afraid that I might have harmed her, before I heard her whimper, "Yes," and felt her hand tugging at my hair. I began answering her thrust for thrust, keeping in mind that she was fragile and that my movements needed to be controlled. It was fortunate that, by nature, I was incapable of deliberately hurting my mate, so it wasn't an impossible to deed to achieve.

Her movements grew faster, and her breathing became erratic. I pulled back from her lips, allowing her to gasp for much needed oxygen, and moved my lips to her throat. I changed the position of my hands, bringing one to cup her ass and the second to cup her other breast. The scent of her arousal was better than the scent of her blood. And at least for now, the vampire in me cared less for the blood of the human in my arms and more for her body.

Bella had tamed my beast.

I kept breathing in her scent, kissing and sucking on the soft skin of her throat. Her head lay on my shoulder, her hands tugging at my hair, and her body moved over mine.

"Oh, Edward," she whimpered. "Please..."

"Yes, baby." I loved the sound of my name spoken in that fashion by my Bella.

"Please...," she whimpered, pleading and breathless.

"Anything for you," I vowed. "Anything for you, my Bella." I was just as breathless as she was.

"More...please...I can't..." She couldn't form complete sentences, but I understood.

If I had suspected she was innocent before, I had no doubt now, and the realization did wonderful things for both the vampire and the man inside me. _She will know no touch but my own. She will know no pleasure but that which is brought by my own hands and body._

"Yes, my Bella," I whispered in her ear and enjoyed how that action had her shivering on top of me. "There is nothing I want more than to please you." I emphasized my words with my hands pressing her down on my cock.

"Yes..." She groaned.

"I love each and every moment that your body is close to mine." I continued to whisper. My hands guided her moves up and down my body. "One day, I will have you naked," I promised. "I will kiss each and every part of your lovely body." I kissed her neck and moved the fabric of her shirt aside with my nose a little to allow me access to the skin of her shoulder. "I will taste your breasts..." I nibbled at her collarbone. "I will lick my way down your body..." I licked a path from her shoulder back to her throat and up her neck. "And I will taste you like no man had ever before. I will lick and suck and _thrust,_ " I bucked my hips, "my tongue and my fingers inside you."

"Oh, Edward, yes! Please..." She was breathless and begging.

I brought my hand between our bodies, not a simple feat as we were pressed tightly together. I slid it down to just above her sex, where her most sensitive bud of nerves was just two layers away from me, and began to rub her.

Bella pressed her body even harder on mine and began mumbling my name into my shoulder, almost chanting it like a prayer.

No woman, human or vampire, had ever had the effect Bella had had on my body, and when she began to whimper and grind franticly over my body, I felt the coil inside my stomach tighten. I closed my eyes and clenched my teeth. I fought for control, but her pleasure was my pleasure, and we were both teetering on the precipice.

"Let go, my Bella," I whispered. "Come for me, my beautiful love."

Her screams of pleasure were muffled by the fabric of my shirt, but that was all it took to throw me off the edge. I felt her body tense at the same time as mine did, and we climaxed together, the pleasure washing over our bodies in the most powerful orgasm I had ever had.

I let my head drop back, but my arms snaked around Bella's fragile form, holding her close. Her heartbeat was slowing down, but the sound of it was so loud in my ears and so close to where my own un-beating heart was that for a moment I could have believed that Bella did the unthinkable and made my own heart beat again.

My body felt as though I was lying on a soft cloud and there was nothing in my world but the angel I was holding in my arms. I listened to her breathing even out and her heartbeat slow down. I was in my own personal heaven, and I didn't want to move an inch.

I thought she had fallen asleep at some point, but when I felt her move her head from my shoulder, I opened my eyes to look at her.

I was met with a pair of deep sparkling brown eyes and a flushed face. I was overwhelmed with emotion and before the intent had even registered in my mind spoke the words that came straight from my heart.

"I love you, my Bella."

I froze when I saw her eyes widen. It took her eleven and a half seconds to speak, but those seconds were hell for me. I began doubting myself, and my thoughts swung out of control with fear. _Did I scare her away? What if I did and she sends me away?_

Images of what my existence would look like without her by my side were plunging down on me and tormenting me. Eleven and a half seconds might not sound or feel like a long time for a human, but they felt like an eternity to me; an eternity until she spoke, and my entire world shifted.

"I love you too, _my_ Edward," she said with a blinding smile.

In that moment, everything inside me came undone and all the lines that had previously held me to my existence were sliced apart in swift cuts. Everything that made me who and what I am—my love for my human family, my affection and loyalty to my new vampire family, my hatred for my enemies, my home, my name, my self—disconnected from me in that instant.

But I was not left drifting. A new bond was formed.

A bond that was stronger than a million steel cables all tying me to one thing, to the very center of my universe. The gravity of the earth no longer tied me to the place where I lay. It was the human girl that I was holding in my arms and looking into her eyes. She held me now.

* * *

**I took the liberty of paraphrasing Stephenie Meyer. The original quote is from** _**Breaking Dawn** _ **, paperback edition, page 360.**

**I hope you had enjoyed reading this chapter as much as I had enjoyed writing it.**

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	25. Promises

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I was still basking in pure happiness when I walked through the door on Saturday evening. It wasn't because of the physical pleasure—well, at least it wasn't _only_ because of it—that I was so happy. Edward said he loved me. More than once.

I could have doubted once, especially with the timing being right after the most amazing orgasm I had ever had—I had experimented myself, but it was nowhere nearly as enjoyable as the one Edward gave me—but he said it several times during our picnic. It was also the last thing he said to me when he drove me back home. He didn't offer to stay because Charlie was already only two blocks away from the house.

Ten minutes after we had said our goodbyes, I was still smiling like a Cheshire cat.

_Yes, I'm a teenager in love._

I wanted to squeal and jump up and down like a bunny, but I knew that that would grant me a one-way ticket to the loony bin, so I tried to restrain myself in front of Charlie.

It worked only partly. I was able to avoid the jumping like a bunny and squealing like a girl, but I could not wipe away the smile from my face. I was too happy for my own good.

"You're in a good mood tonight," Charlie noted. "Where have you been?"

I was glad that I had the excuse of an open fridge door to hide my face behind because I was blushing beet-red, and I knew it would raise even more questions if my dad saw me like that.

"I was on a picnic," I said. "It was a really lovely day, and I didn't feel like staying at home." _Please don't ask me who was with me. Please don't ask me who was with me,_ I chanted in my head as I tried to force my cheeks to stop blushing. "How was your trip with Billy?" I tried to divert his attention from me.

"We had a good time. Like you said, it was a lovely day."

When I could no longer hide behind the door, I took a deep breath, grabbed a bottle of water, and closed the fridge. I walked to the counter, turning my back to Charlie, and poured myself a glass. I wasn't really thirsty, but it was a good excuse to keep my face—and my red cheeks—averted from him.

"Where did you go?"

"Um...it's a small meadow just a short drive away from Forks." It wasn't a lie. It _was_ a small meadow, and it _was_ just a short drive away from Forks. _So why am I shaking in my boots?_

"Really? How did you find it?"

_Grrr...what's with the twenty questions?_

Charlie picked one hell of a time to be inquisitive.

"A friend showed it to me," I answered. That was also true. Edward was a friend when he showed it to me. _Sort of._

I wasn't even convincing myself, so I had little hope that I would be able to convince Charlie. I had to find a way to make myself scarce and fast. I closed the bottle and turned to the fridge to put it away.

"I'm going upstairs to take a shower. Is there anything you'd like for dinner?" I asked, hoping it would get me out of the room without any further questions.

"Whatever you wanna make is fine, Bells." He eyed me carefully when I closed the fridge and walked past him to the stairs.

"Great. I'll be down once I'm done with the shower."

I was almost in the clear. I had just stepped over the last stair when Charlie's voice came from behind me, asking the one question I did _not_ want him to ask.

"Bells? What's that friend's name? Was he or she with you today?"

_To lie or not to lie?_ I couldn't lie to save my life, and I knew it. "Um...Edward?" It came out as a question rather than an answer. _Great, there's no way to avoid the Charlie inquisition now._

"Edward...?"

"Edward Cullen." I turned to look at Charlie. I could not hide my face anymore, but at least I wasn't smiling like an idiot any longer. I was biting my lip, instead. _Dead giveaway_.

"Is Edward your boyfriend?"

_Here we go._ "Yes, Dad."

"Since when?"

"Since today, I guess."

"How long have you two been seeing each other?" He raised a brow and folded his arms across his chest. It was not a good sign.

"Well, we met at the end of the summer, and when school started it turned out that we shared most of our classes." I was getting better with half-truths. Edward did meet me at the end of the summer; I just wasn't awake when he did that.

"So when do I get to meet him?" Charlie asked, looking at me pointedly.

I groaned. "I don't know."

"How about dinner on Monday?" he suggested.

I understood from his tone that I was _not_ getting out of it. "I'll ask him," I said. "If he doesn't have plans, then it shouldn't be a problem." I tried to leave myself a getaway, but Charlie was having none of that.

"If Monday doesn't work for him, ask what day does. I'll make sure the boys cover for me at the station."

"Okay, Dad."

"Enjoy the shower, Bella."

"I'll try," I mumbled under my breath.

I heard Charlie chuckling as I made my way to my bedroom. I threw myself on my bed and groaned. _Guess there was no getting out of it now_.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I pulled it out with little enthusiasm. My good mood from before was gone.

"Hi, Alice."

" _Tell Charlie that you two are invited over for dinner on Monday,"_ she said, skipping the greeting all together, as usual.

"Why?"

" _Because that way he could meet me and Esme; and when we tell him that we are having a sleepover on the weekend while the boys are gone for a camping trip, he will have no objections."_

"I thought it was supposed to be a birthday sleepover" My mood plummeted even further at the prospect of not having Edward for the weekend _again_.

Alice giggled. _"Of course not, silly. Edward wouldn't miss your birthday party for the world."_

"Oh, ok, then." I was still worried about that party, but if I would be spending the entire weekend with Edward nearby, I could handle most of what Alice might throw at me.

" _Have a nice shower."_

"Thanks, Alice. Bye."

" _Bye, Bella."_

w.W.w

As I stood under the warm water of the shower, I thought about the things Edward had told me in the meadow. The flashbacks he said that Rosalie had showed him. and his thoughts on the matter. For a moment—and I would never admit it to Edward, but for a moment—I wondered whether or not I should believe him.

It just sounded too weird. A dead woman shows up in the middle of the forest, out of the blue, and shows you a different timeline? I didn't think there would be anyone who _wouldn't_ doubt that.

But that was Edward, and he had no reason to lie.

I felt truly sick when he told me what she had showed him, an ugly break up, suicide—first on my part than on his—and then an execution.

Edward had held me for several minutes when he was done telling me the story as I was shaking so hard.

When I had finally relaxed, he told me about the conclusions he had come to regarding the reasons behind everything she had shown him. I had no doubt that even now—with my feelings only beginning to blossom—I would have reacted badly to his departure. If he took his entire family with him, I would certainly fall apart. I didn't think that I would have stooped as low as suicide, though. I didn't even want to think about losing him and his family.

To distract me from overthinking things, he told me about the things Carlisle had experienced ever since meeting me. I would have laughed when he told me about the haunting in his house, but I felt so bad for Carlisle that it was just plain sad.

Then he told me about Alice's theory of the two different timelines. One in which Rosalie was a vampire and the Cullens found each other much earlier than in this timeline. How Calrisle thought that it must have been destiny that led them all to each other. I felt weird even thinking in terms of timelines and destinies, but then again, I _did_ live in a world where vampires and werewolves were real. Was believing in a parallel timeline that much of a stretch?

Especially when combined with my own suspicions.

I told Edward about my accident from January and my thoughts on it. How I was not afraid and how later it felt wrong—as if it was _supposed_ to have worked out differently.

It was then that something had clicked in my mind.

"In that different timeline, you and Carlisle would have moved together to Forks, right?" I asked him.

"Yes." He nodded. "We were together for decades before coming to Forks."

"Then you, Alice, Jasper, Emmett, and that Rosalie would have all been in my school for two years when I moved here, right?"

It hadn't taken him long to understand where I was going. "I was supposed to have been there to save you," he murmured, looking shocked and...guilty?

"Maybe," I said. "We might never know for sure." I shrugged.

"I'm sorry," he said, looking deep into my eyes.

I was lost in his gaze for a moment before his words registered in my mind. "Why are you sorry?" I frowned.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't there to spare you the pain." His voice was rough with hurt, and I could not stand that.

"Don't go there, Edward," I said with as much sternness as I could muster. "It's not your fault. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. We don't even know if you would have been there in the parking lot on that day."

"Why wouldn't I be there?"

"I don't know. Maybe you were on the other side of the school or in a classroom." I shrugged. "It's only a feeling that I had, nothing concrete, and there's nothing either one of us could do about it now anyway."

He hugged me close then, burying his face in my hair. "I never want to lose you," he murmured, holding me a little tighter.

"I never want you to lose me either." I smiled.

I loved the way it felt to be hugged by him, surrounded by his scent.

"Is it very difficult for you?" I asked when a sudden thought crossed my mind.

"What is?" he asked, not breaking the hug.

"This," I said, squeezing him a little to show him what I meant. "You said that my scent is even sweeter to you than anyone else's, and I was wondering..."

"I don't think about it when I hold you." He pulled back to look at me. "At first, your blood was all I could think of when I was near you." He looked slightly embarrassed by his confession. "But now, when I am near you, it is not your blood that I thirst for."

I saw his eyes darken, and his voice grew huskier.

The butterflies in my stomach began fluttering, and my breath hitched as his face moved closer to mine.

"When I am this close to you, all I can think of is how much I want to kiss you." He planted a light kiss on my lips that did nothing to satiate the hunger rising inside me. "I want to taste _you_ , not your blood."

I blushed fiercely, and another question came to my mind. "What about my blush? Does that bother you?" I knew it was an involuntary response of my body, but I felt the need to know.

"Your blush is one of the loveliest things about you." He seemed as though he was about to say more, but instead he kissed me, and my entire focus shifted to the taste of his lips on my tongue and the feel of his hands on my body.

I became aware of my surroundings once again when I felt the water cool down. The memories from the day were so precious to me. Not only had I gotten my first kiss today, and my first climax for that matter, but the boy—no, man—I love told me that he loved me too.

Nothing would change that.

w.W.w

**Rosalie**

My eyes were glued to the screen before me.

I watched carefully as Edward and Bella settled in the meadow and held my fingers crossed. _If things work out the way I want them to, it might all be over soon._ I examined every word they had said and every movement they had made, but as soon as it was clear where this was going, I bolted. There were a few things that I had never wanted to see, and my brother having sex with his girlfriend was definitely in the top ten of that list.

Gaia called me back a few minutes later. I was happy to see both of them fully dressed, even if Bella was lying on top of Edward in what could be a very compromising position. I allowed myself a glance at Gaia. "Did they...?"

"No," Gaia chuckled. "No clothes were removed."

_Good._ I was glad to see that Edward took my advice and didn't push Bella. Had he tried anything that involved removing clothes, things would have spiraled downward. Edward was not yet ready to face Bella's blood when it was freshly spilled, and nothing killed the mood like trying to eat your partner.

"How long have they been quiet like that?" I asked when neither of them moved nor spoke for almost two minutes.

"About five minutes," Gaia said with a satisfied smile.

Her smile gave me hope. I didn't have much of that lately, and I was afraid to allow myself to hope. It had been over nine decades since I last held my Emmett in my arms, since I last kissed him, not knowing that it would be my last kiss for a very long time—possibly forever.

I pushed those thoughts away from my head. I needed to focus on the positive, and things were definitely looking bright.

I watched as Edward opened his eyes and stared at Bella, and then he said the words I had been waiting for him to say for a very long time.

"I love you, my Bella."

I looked over to Bella. She looked shocked at his confession.

_Come on,_ I thought, impatient. _Tell him you love him, and let's get it over with._

I almost growled when it took her more than eleven seconds to answer—yes, I counted—and I was sure that Edward shared my fear for those seconds; that Bella might not return the feelings.

"I love you too, _my_ Edward," Bella said with a bright smile.

"Yes!" I pumped my fist in the air, a classic Emmett gesture that had brushed off on me. I was sure my smile was able to put to shame Bella and Edward's smiles put together.

_It is done. I can go back to my Emmett now._

But my joy was short lived. As the seconds ticked by, nothing happened. I waited, no longer watching the pair on the screen in front of me, no longer listening to every word that they said. I looked around me. Nothing had changed.

Gaia was still watching the screen.

I was still standing in the middle of god-knows-where, stuck between life and death.

_Why didn't it change?_

I felt like pacing the room. Or maybe breaking the screen. Or maybe yelling so loud that any nearby windows would break.

_I have fulfilled my side of the deal. Why am I not back with my Emmett yet?_

With each passing minute and zero changes, my temper flared. Was I played for a fool AGAIN? Did these stupid, cunning motherfuckers lie to me?

Was I never going to see Emmett, after all?

"Rosalie? What's wrong?" Gaia finally turned away from the screen to look at me.

I spoke my mind without even thinking to bother with a filter. "Did that motherfucker lie to me AGAIN? Did he play another trick?"

I was furious and had no intention of hiding it. I was conned once. I wasn't happy to learn that it might have happened again. The first time was my fault; I was a fool who played with forces I knew nothing about. I thought I was smarter the second time. Apparently not.

"What are you talking about?" Gaia looked as though she was trying to control her own temper.

_What right does she have to be mad?_

"I'm talking about brother dearest. I'm talking about the deal I had made with him. I'm talking about how I busted my ass to fulfill _my_ part of the deal and _nothing_ happened!"

"Rosalie Lillian Hale!" She raised her voice just slightly, but her eyes suddenly became darker, reminding me her brother's eyes on that fateful day when I had made my wish. A wish that had started all of this mess.

"What?" I growled through gritted teeth.

"Remember who you are speaking to," Gaia said coldly. "I may not be as powerful as my brother, but I am not to be taken lightly, and I will not tolerate disrespect."

I swallowed once, trying to keep my anger from getting the best of me. It had gotten the best of me on previous occasions. Gaia was right; she was not to be taken lightly.

"Think, Rosalie. What were the exact words of the deal you had made with my brother?" Gaia asked.

I thought back to the day I had met Chronos for the second time in my life. It was just after I had died—for the bloody second time—as a human and found myself somewhere between life and death.

_I stood in a long hallway. It was brightly lit, and its walls were painted sterile white._ This place looks like a bloody hospital _, I thought. I looked around me, but I could see no medical staff, no machinery. In fact, I could see nothing more than the white long wall of the hall that had seemed to be endless._

_I took a few steps forward, and that was when my memories had hit me. I fell to my knees and gasped as a lifetime of memories was suddenly flashing before my eyes. It wasn't the life that I had lived as a human; it was the life that I had lived as a vampire._

_It was almost like watching a movie, only I was the main character in this one._

_I had no idea how long it took for everything to flash, how long I stayed on my knees, when the last memory showed. It was a painful memory. I saw myself grieving over a soul mate that I had watched myself fall in love with. I didn't know him during my human life, but while watching the memories, all of the feelings I had for him had returned._

_I had a family. I had a husband. I had brothers and a sister._

_I watched myself in the bedroom that I had suddenly remembered everything about. I noticed that I had company. It was someone that I had not met before or since the time of that memory._

" _I can make it all go away," he stated calmly. "I can bring back your Emmett and punish those who need to be punished. I can give you your human life back as well, if that is what you wish."_

_I knew that his words were tempting. I felt myself being tempted even now._

" _All you need to do is make a wish," he said, and I saw myself about to open my mouth, but he stopped me. "Think carefully, because whatever you choose, it will be irreversible. Once you speak your wish and it is granted, you will never be able to go back."_

_And then I heard myself say, "I wish Edward Cullen had never been born."_

" _Wish granted," said the strange man, and the memories were over. I was back on my knees in the endless white hall._

_I knew why I had wished for Edward to never be born. I heard the thoughts that had led me to it. But watching everything again, I knew I was wrong. I should have asked for my Emmett. I should not have tried to punish the man I saw responsible for his death. It brought nothing. It gained me nothing._

_I wasn't even sure that I had gained revenge because the memory went black. Did I get my wish? Was Edward really missing from this world? I got my human life back, but it had ended in very much the same manner. Only this time, there was no Carlisle to save me._

_Or was there?_

_I saw a figure approach me from the endless hall. It was a male with blond hair. I let my hopes up, and they were shattered as soon as he came closer. It wasn't Carlisle; he didn't look anything like him._

" _Rosalie Lillian Hale." He didn't ask; it was a statement. How did he know my name? "Please follow me."_

_I didn't seem to have any other option, so I followed. He walked down the hall and out of the blue, a door appeared at the end of it. Where there was only fog before, a white wooden door now stood._

_The man opened the door and gestured for me to walk in._

" _Thank you," I murmured, more out of habit than real gratitude._

_I turned to ask him what was this place, but he closed the door, and it disappeared once again._

What a strange place, _I thought._

_I took a step forward, trying to see something beyond the fog that had surrounded me. It was like being inside a huge cloud, a little chilly, slightly moist, and nothing but white fog around._

_I took another tentative step and found myself in the middle of a great hall. I didn't have time to look around me because my eyes immediately focused on the man sitting on the throne in front of me._

" _You!" I hissed._

" _It is lovely to see you again, Rose."_

" _Don't you dare call me Rose. Who are you?_ What _are you?" I demanded._

_He shook his head, looking very much like a grandfather who is amused by his disobedient but loveable grandchild. "I would have thought I had left a more lasting impression," he said with a smile that made my stomach turn. "But. of course, I had not told you my name the last time we met. I am Chronos, ruler of time."_

_I huffed._ Yeah, right, and I'm Queen Elizabeth.

" _You are no queen, my dear, but I must say you are quite amusing in your own right."_

Great, _I thought,_ another mind reader. Just what I needed.

" _Oh yes, I almost forgot that you have had the pleasure of living with a mind reader during your vampire life."_

" _You don't strike me as the type to forget," I spat. "What do you want now?"_

" _It would be in your best interest to remember your manners." He spoke softly, but I could hear the steel in his tone. It was not a request._

_I folded my arms across my chest and looked at him defiantly._

_He chuckled._

That...

" _I would not finish that thought if I were you," he said, looking at me with a warning._

" _Stay out of my head, and you won't hear it." I huffed but refrained from calling him any more names._

" _Good. That is better," he said approvingly. "Now, I am sure you would like to know the reason I had you brought here."_

_I nodded, biting my tongue to keep myself from saying something I might later regret. I had to remember that I was no longer a vampire and thus really did not stand any sort of chance against someone who was obviously mythical in his own right._

" _Good girl," he almost purred._

Grrr...what am I? A bloody dog? _I couldn't help the thought, but I did not express it out loud._

" _I was wondering how you were enjoying your wish," he stated simply._

" _Enjoying?" I raised a brow, wondering whether or not his use of the term was sarcastic. "I'm dead, so I guess the answer is not so much."_

" _It is a shame really." He shook his head. "You had quite the potential, but alas, you wasted your wish on something that was destiny."_

" _Destiny?" W_ as Edward really destined to be a vampire? That's odd.

" _Yes, destiny. And as far as I can see, you did not even get a chance to meet your soul mate this time around." His tone made it sound as a question, so I nodded. "Too bad."_

" _Yeah, well, life sucks and then you die," I spat. "Nothing new about that."_

" _You are quite the firecracker." He chuckled._

" _I'm glad I amuse you," I said, sarcasm dripping heavily from every word. "Too bad you can't keep your promise."_

" _Excuse me?" His eyes narrowed, and all trace of amusement was gone from his face._

" _Well, you promised that you could grant me any wish I would make," I said._

" _Yes, I did."_

" _And now you say that you can't grant me that wish because it's destiny. That sounds like breaking a promise to me," I stated, looking him straight in the eye. When I thought about it, what was the worst he could do to me? I was already dead and without my soul mate—there was not much worse he_ _could_ _do._

" _That is an interesting way to look at things," he murmured, tapping his finger on his chin. He looked as though he was deep in thought for several moments before he spoke again. "How about we make a deal then?" he suggested._

" _What kind of deal?" I asked, suspicious._

" _Well, I don't want people to start doubting my promises. I will offer you a deal since I was unable to fulfill your wish."_

" _I'm listening," I said, still cautious._

" _I understand that you would like to be reunited with your soul mate."_

" _Yes."_

" _Well, seeing as I am a master of time, I might be able to do that for you, but you would have to do something in return."_

" _What?" I asked warily. I didn't like the direction of this conversation._

" _I do not want history to repeat itself, so I_ _ **will**_ _reunite you with your soul mate,_ _ **if**_ _," he paused and looked at me pointedly, "you can prevent the event that had led to you two being torn apart. Do you know which event I am talking about?"_

_I thought carefully about my answer. Emmett was torn away from me because he was executed by the Volturi. He was in their hands because Alice saw Edward going there and asking them to end his life. The reason Edward did that to begin with was Bella dying._

" _You want me to stop Bella from killing herself?" I asked, making sure I had the right answer._

" _I cannot simply give you the answer; you must come up with it yourself," he said sternly._

" _Fine, but how am I supposed to change anything? I'm dead."_ I think _, I added in my mind._

" _I will supply you with help from my world," he said. "My sister, Gaia. She will assist you in your quest."_

" _What are the rules?" I asked, fully aware that nothing could be that easy._

" _Smart girl," he praised, and again I felt like a dog being patted on the head for not peeing on the carpet. "The rules are simple: you have until the day of your soul mate's death." He paused, looking at me for confirmation._

_I nodded. Emmett died on March seventeenth._

" _You are not allowed to speak of the exact details of our deal to anyone. The only exception to this rule is Gaia since she will be assisting you."_

_I nodded again._

" _Gaia is not allowed to act in your stead. She can watch and advise you, but she will not decide for you. You are the one to perform the deed."_

_I nodded._

" _You are not allowed to influence free will."_

_I rolled my eyes at that. That one was obvious._

" _You are not allowed to show yourself to any creature walking the earth, dead or alive," he continued, ignoring my reaction._

_I nodded._ That rule might prove difficult to work with, _I thought._

" _I am well aware of that, but you will have Gaia to assist you," he said. "She can come in a dream or a vision and will speak on your behalf. She will fill you in on any missing information you might have regarding past events, and she will stop you if your actions are about to interfere with another's destiny."_

" _Sounds reasonable. Anything else?" It sounded almost too easy._

" _No, that is all."_

" _What would happen if I failed?" I was determined that I would not be going into it blindly._

" _If you fail, then you will have to serve under me for a hundred years," he said._

" _And if I succeed?" I asked, wanting to make sure all my bases were covered._

_He chuckled. "If you succeed in preventing the event that tore you away from your mate before time runs out, then I will bring you back to him."_

" _In what world would that be? At what time?" I felt weird asking about a different world and time._

" _In a world where both of you exist, and at a time when the event did not occur."_

_The answer was vague, and I suspected that it was on purpose. But he did say that he would not tell me whatever it was that I was supposed to prevent, so I could understand why he could not tell me the when and where of the reward._ I don't care about the when and where, _I thought._ As long as I can be with my Emmett, I can handle everything else.

" _I agree," I said._

" _Excellent." He clapped his hands, and a servant appeared out of nowhere, holding a scroll in his hands._ Whatever happened to paper? _"Sign here."_

_Chronos handed me the scroll and an ancient feather quill._ Can you say stuck in the eighteenth century?

_I read through the scroll carefully. All the terms were there. I signed my name at the bottom, and as soon as I finished writing the E of my last name, the scroll and quill vanished from between my hands._

" _Wonderful," Chronos chimed._ That dude is seriously giving me the creeps. _"Please, follow Stephan and he will show you to your room. Gaia will meet you there."_

"I am to prevent the event that had torn me and my soul mate apart," I said, coming back from my memories. "If I am successful, I get to go back to him."

"And what was that event?" Gaia asked.

"Well, at first I thought it was simply to prevent Bella from dying. Then, I went further and thought that it was to prevent the two of them from meeting in the first place. However, Chronos had said that Edward was destined to be a vampire, and you said that Bella was destined to meet him, so I couldn't do that. Lately, I've been thinking that it's to prevent the two of them from breaking up."

"And you think you achieved that?" she asked. It was not criticism. It was an honest question.

"Didn't I?" I asked. "They are together and in love. Edward stated that he would never leave her." I shrugged, puzzled. "I think I have."

Gaia paused, and her brows furrowed. She had truly become a friend during my long years in this place. Although she never told me exactly _where_ I was, she did help me well beyond her duty. Hell, she even broke several rules for me.

"Thank you, by the way." I spoke quietly. "I appreciate everything you've done to help me."

Gaia smiled at me warmly. She reminded me of Esme sometimes, and when she smiled, it was hard not to feel a pang of sadness for the mother that I had not hugged for so long.

"You are most welcome, Rosalie," she said. "I have grown to love you as family, and I really do hope that you will find a way to be reunited with the one your heart desires."

"I hope so too," I said, and my voice broke. I had learned that even now, in this weird existence, I was not able to cry, but it did not stop the tears from pooling in my eyes or the lump from forming in my throat. "I really hope so."

"Let us think together," Gaia suggested, putting her hand on my shoulder. "At what time did their break up take place?"

"Three days after her eighteenth birthday."

"Which is now only three days away?"

"Yes."

"Why did he break up with her?" Gaia asked.

I found it odd. Didn't I tell her that before?

"Tell me again."

"Okay, Bella cut her finger during the birthday party that Alice had arranged for her. It was a paper cut, but Jasper was already struggling with our diet, and it was all it took for him to lose control. He tried to attack her. Edward pushed her back and we were able to drag Jasper away. Edward had never forgiven himself for letting Bella get hurt. He decided that it was safer for her if we left, and she could continue her life as a human."

As I spoke, I recalled the first time I had told this story to Gaia. It was just after she had told me that they were destined to meet. I asked her to show me what Bella had been through after our departure, and I felt sick to my stomach when I watched her falling apart. It was only then that I really understood how much Bella loved Edward. I had always thought that because she was human it would pass, that she would get over him and let herself find a new man. Even after hearing that she took her own life, I thought it had nothing to do with us or Edward. I had underestimated her, but then again, I had also underestimated my own brother, and that's what got me where I was now.

"What makes you think that this cannot happen again?" Gaia asked, once again tearing me away from my memories.

"Jasper is much stronger this time around. He won't attack her," I said with confidence.

"What about the others?" Gaia asked.

I knew she was asking the question in order to make me think of all the possibilities. She never gave me the answers, even though for the most part she had them long before I had even asked the questions.

"Carlisle was never an issue. Alice is just as well adept as Jasper. Emmett only slipped once, and it was with his singer, so I'm not concerned about him. Esme might be a cause to worry, but Carlisle would restrain her easily if it would come to that; she's not as strong as Jasper."

"What about Edward? After all, she _is_ his singer," Gaia asked. "And today you doubted him yourself," she reminded me.

"True," I said. "I suppose you're right. Edward might be prone to temptation," I admitted. "What if I warn him? He might be more prepared."

"Do you think he needs the warning?"

"No." I chuckled. "I think after today he would be making even more of an effort to desensitize himself." I still had trouble not laughing when I compared my prude of a brother to the Edward of this world. He was so much more outgoing and confident; it was almost like a complete one-eighty from the vampire that spent his days and nights alone in his room, overthinking everything.

I was certain that after having a taste of Bella, he would not be able to keep his hands to himself for long. He was aware that Bella was a virgin. For him, it meant he had to learn to handle her blood when it was freshly spilled. From what I learned about him in this timeline, Edward was not a patient man now. He was not going to put off something that would bring him pleasure if it wasn't necessary. He would begin training himself harder and soon. I had no doubt about it.

"Okay, so we covered the 'being attacked by a Cullen' option. What else?"

"Well, Edward was upset that she got hurt while under his watch, that he wasn't able to protect her."

"And how do you think he will handle it this time?"

"I think he's more confident," I said, pondering over her question. "He wouldn't see it as his fault unless he really is the one to attack her Even then, I think he would be able to forgive himself as long as she did—and I'm sure you can tell that she would forgive him just about anything."

"Yes, I have noticed that." Gaia smiled. "That girl is a classic martyr."

"You have no idea." I rolled my eyes and then laughed at myself. "On second thought, you probably do." I chuckled again.

"Yes, I do." Gaia smiled.

"So if we pass this birthday party, then things should go smoothly, right?"

"I do not think so." Gaia shook her head. "I think it is not a matter of time for those two but a matter of trial."

"Trial?"

"Yes," she stated confidently. "In the previous timeline, they parted because of a crisis that was handled badly," she reminded me. "Time was not the problem for those two."

"They need to learn to overcome crisis," I said, feeling like a complete oaf for not realizing that sooner. "Time and feelings have little effect if all it takes is one trial for them to break apart."

Gaia smiled approvingly. It was a similar smile to that of her brother, but I found it much less annoying.

I was happy that I had found the answer, and this time I was certain that I got it right. "But how do we know that they can do that?" I asked, frowning. "It's not like we can just send him someone to attack her and see how Edward handles it."

"We might not need to," Gaia said.

"What do you mean?"

"You know I cannot tell you everything," Gaia said gently.

I knew. She had broken enough rules for me. I could not ask her to break more.

"What I _can_ say is that you would not have to wait long."

"How long?" I asked, hoping that she would be allowed to answer at least that.

"About a week or so."

I sighed. "Shouldn't be too hard to keep those two out of trouble for a week." I instantly regretted my words. "I'm in trouble now, aren't I?" I looked warily at Gaia.

"Only time will tell, my dear," she answered in her usual way of avoiding subjects she could not tell me. "Only time will tell."

* * *

**Am I the only one who thinks that the ending in both POV's is somewhat ominous?**

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	26. Embrace Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Carlisle**

Edward was standing outside of the house just as I was arriving back from my shift at the hospital. He was practically glowing.

_I don't have to ask how your picnic went. It's written all over your face._ I chuckled.

"She's the most amazing creature I have ever seen," Edward said.

It was somewhat unexpected, coming from a trained soldier such as him. _Love will do that to you_. I thought.

"Speaking of love..." Edward tilted his head and looked at me pointedly.

I sighed and stopped walking toward the front door. _Let's go for a walk._

"Lead the way," he said with a satisfied smile.

I walked to the car and locked my bag inside it before turning toward the forest. We did not go far, just enough to be out of earshot of the house. I felt as though I was a boy facing the angry father of the girl he's courting.

Edward chuckled. "I'm not her father, Carlisle."

"I know, but you are her sire," I replied.

"Well, if it's any consolation, I'm not going to shoot you," Edward teased.

_He is enjoying this._

"Of course I am." He grinned. "It's not every day I get to see you all flustered."

"I'm not flustered," I grumbled under my breath.

"Sure you're not." Edward rolled his eyes. "I'm not asking about your intentions toward her, Carlisle. It's not my place to do so, and I'm pretty sure Esme would have my head if I tried it."

I smiled. _Yes, Esme has a lot of fire in her._ The thought brought some very pleasant memories that I had to banish as soon as they came.

"Thank you. There are some things I do _not_ want a visual of." He shuddered.

"So what _are_ you asking for?"

"Well, you are aware that we all know you're mated, right?" Edward asked.

"I suspected as much." Esme and I were not very discreet about our feelings for each other, even if we had not yet consummated our bond. Living with an empath, a mind reader, and a psychic under the same roof made secrets practically impossible to keep.

"You're right about that one," Edward said with another grin. "When are you going to do that?"

It took me a full second to understand what he was referring to. "I was thinking sometime soon," I confessed. I was waiting for the perfect opportunity. I felt that Esme would appreciate some privacy for this. I considered offering a vacation, but it seemed too obvious so I gave up on that idea. I considered taking her outside on the pretense of a hunt, but it did not feel right to do it outside where we could be interrupted.

"I might be able to help you with that."

_How?_

"Well, Alice called me earlier," Edward said. "She and Jasper went away for the night. They'll be back by tomorrow afternoon. I can take Emmett for a hunting trip tonight. He's always up for a little healthy competition."

"What about Bella?" I was surprised that he was willing to pass on the chance to spent time with her.

"I'm not passing on the chance. The girl's got to sleep sometime." He shrugged. "Alice said that Bella wouldn't wake up before eleven, so that gives me and Emmett plenty of time to hunt."

Eleven o'clock in the morning. That left me with just under sixteen hours alone with Esme. It should be enough time. "Thank you, Edward."

"You're welcome." He smiled.

I still felt as though I should be asking for his blessing.

"You really don't need to, Carlisle, but you have it nonetheless."

"You do not think it is too soon?" I was concerned that I might be rushing things.

Edward laughed before answering. "Carlisle, we're vampires. We mate for life. Do you honestly think that either one of you would want anyone else, ever?"

He had a good point there, and I felt foolish.

"That's love, Carlisle. It has the power to turn us all into mumbling fools."

I smiled. "When did you become so smart in matters of the heart?"

"I don't know. I think you must be rubbing off on me." He chuckled. "Come on, let's get back home. I'm sure Esme's eager to see you." Edward winked.

_As I am to see her,_ I thought as we made our way to the house.

w.W.w

Edward was true to his word and had Emmett out of the house within minutes of our arrival. If Esme found it odd that we were suddenly left alone, she made no mention of it.

I used the time it took for them to leave to make my way into my bedroom, take a shower, and change. I thought of wearing a suit but decided that it would be too formal. I settled on a pair of black slacks and a pale blue dress shirt. I left the top two buttons open and rolled my sleeves up so it would not look too formal.

I dried my hair with a towel and heard laughter behind me when I was done. I turned around to see Esme leaning against the doorway.

"Your hair looks like Edward's."

"And you have a habit of walking in on me," I teased. "I'll be right back."

I took the wet towels to the en suite bathroom and spread them out to dry. When I entered the room again, I noticed Esme was sitting on the window seat.

"How was your shift?"

I walked over to the dresser. "It was quiet, thankfully," I said, looking at her reflection in the mirror as I combed my hair. "How was your day?"

"Lonely," she said, and then added in a very quiet voice, "I missed you."

I turned to look at her. She was looking at the floor, embarrassed. I walked over to sit next to her.

"I missed you too," I whispered, hoping that she would look up.

She did, and I saw that she was smiling at me.

"Will you play for me tonight?" she suddenly asked.

"Anything for you," I answered quickly, unable to hide my desire to please her. "Just let me bring the violin."

She nodded, and I darted out of the room. I took the violin and made a stop at my office. I took the small box out of the drawer and placed it in my pocket. I was about to close the drawer when another box caught my attention. _It might be better to start with that one,_ I thought. I took the second box and made my way back to Esme.

"Is there anything in particular that you would like to hear?" I asked her when I was back in the room.

"Play me some of your favorites?" She looked at me with a smile in her eyes, and I was happy to indulge her.

w.W.w

"That was beautiful, Carlisle, thank you."

"You're welcome." I smiled at her and lowered my violin. _It is now or never,_ I thought as I placed the instrument on the dresser.

Esme watched me with open curiosity as I walked back to sit next to her on the window seat.

"There is something I have been meaning to give you," I began, taking a deep breath to calm my nerves and taste the delicious aroma that was purely Esme. I pulled one of the boxes that I took from the office earlier and handed it to her. "I want every member of our family to have one of these, but I thought it was only fair that I start with you."

I waited anxiously for her to open the lid and look at the contents. She gasped and her hand flew over her mouth.

"I don't know what to say," she breathed, her eyes darting between the delicate pair of silver earrings bearing my family's crest.

"You do not need to say anything," I said, "but I do hope you will accept them."

"I would be honored to, Carlisle." She smiled and took the earrings out of the box.

I was pleased to see her wearing them immediately.

"Thank you," I whispered.

Esme threw her arms around my neck. "Thank _you_ for accepting me into your family."

I hugged her back, enjoying how her body fit into mine. "You were a part of it from the moment you walked into this house, but there is something I would like to ask you...," I hesitated.

"What is it?" she asked, pulling back, but keeping her arms on me.

"Well, I was wondering whether you would be willing to make it official."

Her eyes widened slightly and she blinked a few times before speaking. "Official?"

I took a deep breath and let the words flow from my heart. "From the moment I laid eyes on you, even before knowing your name, my heart recognized you. Since then I have discovered a beautiful, caring and amazingly companionate woman with whom I had fallen in love." I slid from the window seat and kneeled before her, holding her hands in mine. "I have spent over three centuries alone, fearing that I would never find someone to love. I do not wish to spend another moment without you, Esme." I turned her hand up and placed the second box into her palm. "Will you do me the extraordinary honor of giving me your hand in marriage?"

w.W.w

**Esme**

I was touched by his gift. The earrings held a meaning deeper than that of a simple gift between lovers. It was a request to join his coven, his family. It was a request to accept him as my leader. He was so hesitant that I couldn't help but throw myself at him. Didn't he know that I would follow him to the end of the earth? How could he not have guessed that I was already his?

But then, as he continued to speak, I felt my heart swell and my eyes fill with tears. When he kneeled in front of me, I felt my breathing halt.

"I have spent over three centuries alone, fearing that I would never find someone to love. I do not wish to spend another moment without you, Esme."

He turned my hand, palm side up, placing a box in my hand. "Will you do me the extraordinary honor of giving me your hand in marriage?"

There, nestled in a dark blue velvet cushion, was a beautiful ring. It was made of white gold and had an oval blue sapphire in the middle, surrounded with four white diamonds. I lifted my eyes from the ring and looked into his face, filled with hope and fear.

I couldn't find my own voice as I gazed into his eyes. He was beyond anything I could have wished for. He was kind, gentle and loving. He was loyal and dedicated. More than that, I loved him. He was my soul mate.

I placed a hand on his cheek, needing the contact with his skin, smiling. I swallowed once and whispered, "Yes, my love."

He pulled me to him for a kiss as soon as the words left my mouth. It was heaven. Every part of my body was yearning for his touch. Each caress of his lips and tongue was better than the one before. I couldn't get enough of his taste.

When we finally broke apart, Carlisle took the ring out of its box and gently slid it on my finger. He bent down to kiss the back of my hand and then looked up to meet my eyes.

We spent an immeasurable moment just locked in each other's gaze, his fingers gently caressing over my hand and his eyes smiling at me. Finally, he broke the contact to look down at my hand.

"The ring is part of a set that I hope to present to you as a wedding gift," he said, almost absentmindedly. "It also includes a necklace and earrings." His eyes were now focused on the way the moonlight was reflected off the ring. "I bought the set a century ago on a whim. I never really understood what compelled me to buy it," he confessed, looking slightly embarrassed.

"Compelled you?" I had a nagging feeling that there was more to the story and that I needed to hear it.

Carlisle sighed and came to sit beside me once again. He reached to brush a stray lock of hair away from my face and let his fingers linger over my cheek. "It was in the late winter months of 1921. I had been living in Ashland, Wisconsin, for a year by then, and I had just finished a shift in the local hospital... What's wrong?" Carlisle was not oblivious to the new rigidness that had overcome my posture as soon as he mentioned the name of the town in which he had lived.

I closed my eyes as painful memories flooded my mind. Even though they were blurred and foggy, they were still painful. I felt Carlisle embrace me in his strong arms as I began sobbing. The memories of my tiny baby boy were just too painful. The way he cried when he became ill; the way the doctor looked when he told me there was nothing he could do to save my baby...

"I'm sorry," I mumbled between sobs, holding on to Carlisle's shirt and trembling. "The winter of 1921 was not a good time in my life."

"Would you like to tell me?" he whispered.

Was I ready for it? I didn't know. But if I was about to marry this man, he deserved to know, and maybe sharing the story with another being would do me good. "I know that you've heard the story of how I decided to travel the world and ended up in Italy to be sired by Edward," I began, still holding him in a vice grip. The way I was surrounded by his strength was comforting. For what I was about to share, the memories I was about to delve in, I would need all the comfort I could get.

I felt Carlisle nod and give me another squeeze of encouragement.

"What I didn't share with anyone was the story of how I found my way to Italy to begin with." I took a deep breath, inhaling as much of his scent as possible and began my story. "I was born on May 12th, 1885 in Columbus, Ohio. I was an only child, and I suspect that was because I was a handful to deal with. I refused to grow up and come to terms with my mother's vision of how a young woman should act. When I was sixteen, one of my mischiefs had led me to breaking my leg after falling from a tree."

"Yes, Alice was able to tell me that little detail," Carlisle said.

"When?" I pulled away from the hug, surprised.

"When I was looking for you." He kept holding my hands, and I assumed that he didn't want to lose contact with me. "Alice said that she saw you in her visions. That you were telling someone about an accident that led to you breaking your leg at sixteen."

"Do you think she saw this night?"

"I do not know, but I do not think so. Do you remember Alice's theory about how this reality and her visions of the future were distorted?"

I nodded. It was the day when David had left in a childish fit, the day when I first met Carlisle.

"She described the scene to me when she told me about the family that she had seen with me. It was a little while after I had met her and Jasper last year. Alice said that from the style of our clothes in her vision, the conversation took place sometime during the nineteen thirties," he explained.

"Do you think that Alice might be right?"

"Right about what, my love?"

"That we were supposed to have met years ago?"

"I do not know if she is right about that, but I am certain that we were meant for each other." He smiled, and I leaned into him again. "Tell me the rest of the story, please."

"The rest, I'm afraid, is far from pleasant," I warned him.

"Our stories rarely are."

I sighed. He was right. "Eventually, I had no choice but to grow out of my childish behavior. I finished my schoolings and dreamt of becoming a teacher, but my father objected. He had arranged for me to be married. I tried to talk him out of it, tried to plead and beg, but when I turned twenty-two my father left me no choice." I took a deep breath before continuing. I was approaching the time of my life that I was most ashamed of, but it felt good sharing it with Carlisle. It felt almost cleansing. "I married a man named Charles Evenson in a small ceremony, and I tried to be happy with my share."

Carlisle waited patiently, holding me in his arms and slowly caressing my back.

"The first time he hit me was less than a week after our wedding. He apologized immediately, promising that he didn't mean to hurt me, and I believed him. But it happened again and again, and when I tried to seek the help of my mother, she told me to keep quiet and be a good wife to my husband." I scoffed, remembering how betrayed I felt. Even though I could no longer remember my mother's face, I never forgot the feeling of betrayal that she had caused. "Luckily, Charles was drafted to the war, and I had remained alone. For three years, I had built myself a life. I don't remember much about that time, only the general feeling of being somewhat content."

"What happened after those three years?"

"The war was over, and Charles returned home. It was worse than before. Some days it was so bad that I could barely walk..." I shivered, my body still recalled the abuse even though my mind didn't remember the words that were used. "And then one day something changed. I found out that I was with child." I heard Carlisle inhale sharply, but he didn't say anything so I continued to speak. "I ran away from him. I moved through several towns before settling in Ashland." Carlisle became very still, and I buried my face in the crook of his neck, my voice dropping to whispers. "I gave birth in September to a baby boy, and for a few hours I was blissfully happy." I smiled a sad smile, remembering the joy that I had felt when I held my son in my arms. "But my happiness was short-lived. My son began coughing, and he didn't stop. The look on the doctor's face told me that it was not a simple cold. Three days after he was born, my son died in my arms."

"I'm so sorry," Carlisle whispered and hugged me tighter.

"I was mad with grief. I couldn't sleep. I didn't eat. I barely existed." I couldn't stop now. I knew that I would not be able to talk about this again, and I needed to finish. "I was released from the hospital and went back to the empty house with the empty nursery. I let the depression take over, and one night I found myself standing over the cliffs, contemplating taking my own life."

"What made you change your mind?" His voice was so quiet that I had barely heard him.

"I don't know. I just knew that I couldn't do it. I stood on the edge of the cliff for hours, and when the sun began to set, I decided that I was strong enough to live. That there was a reason why I needed to live."

"Do you remember the date?" Carlisle asked suddenly.

I nodded, surprised by his question, but gave him the exact date. It was the only day that I remember clearly from my human life and it pained me. I could remember nothing from my son's birth, but I could never forget the day I stood on that cliff and wanted to just end it once and for all. "I left the city three days later."

"It was the same day." Carlisle's voice was shocked, and I pulled back to look at him. His expression matched the sounds of his voice.

I looked at him, puzzled.

"You left the city on the exact same day when I walked into the jewelry store." His tone was stronger now. "I felt drawn to the store. It was just before closing time when I walked inside. I saw the set and knew that I needed to buy it. I just didn't know why." He paused and seemed to be deep in thought for a while.

"I guess we really _were_ meant to be together." I smiled.

"I suppose you are right." Carlisle returned my smile. "I cannot wait to see the rest of the set on you." He brought his hands to my earlobe, to the earring, and held it gently. "But I must say I enjoy the sight of my family's crest on you very much."

"I enjoy wearing it." I loved to see the joy in his eyes when he looked at me. His gaze held a mixture of several different emotions—awe, happiness, satisfaction, and a hint of lust.

"I had a crest made for each member of our family." He was caressing the side of my neck, and I found it somewhat distracting. "I would like you to be there when I present each of them with it." His tone held a question to it, and I nodded, suddenly not finding my own voice.

w.W.w

**Carlisle**

Seeing Esme wearing the two symbols of my devotion to her brought me great satisfaction. I was amazed by her strength and awed by her beauty. I could hardly believe that this wonderful creature was mine.

_Almost yours_ , my demon reminded me, suddenly awake. _Make her yours,_ he demanded. I felt the urge building inside me, my body reacting before my mind gave the order.

I wanted her. There was no doubt about it.

_You can have her,_ the demon whispered inside my mind. _Touch her,_ he cooed. _Kiss her and take her._

I could not stop my fingers from touching the side of her neck, nor did I want to. The silkiness of her skin was too little and too much at the same time. I wanted more. The vampire inside me _demanded_ more.

"Carlisle..." Esme's voice was unexpectedly husky.

I looked up to see her eyes fixed on me.

"Kiss me," she pleaded.

I did not need to be asked twice.

My mouth was on hers as soon as the words were out of her mouth. I could not be gentle, I needed her too much. Her taste, her touch, her scent, everything about her lured me in, and I was all too willing to follow her. There was nothing to hold me back now. _She's mine._ The thought was echoed by both the man and the vampire inside me.

Her mouth opened for me as soon as my tongue reached for her and my vampire roared with pleasure at her submission. There was no fight for dominance, only acceptance from her. The soft moans that came from her mouth told me that she was enjoying the kiss as much as I was.

I pulled her closer, but the position we were in was uncomfortable. I needed to feel her entire body. I lowered my lips to her neck, sucking on the soft skin at the base of her throat and smiled when I heard her whimper.

We were on my bed in a sixteenth of a second.

"Carlisle..." Esme moaned my name, and it was the most beautiful sound that I had ever heard. Her thighs parted beneath me, cradling my body in a way that was as old as time. I continued to kiss her, alternating between suckling on her bottom lip and devouring her mouth.

Esme was just as eager, and my monster was pleased when she tore the shirt from my back and dug her fingers into the skin of my shoulders.

"I love you," I whispered, nibbling on her collarbone, "I need you." I did not know when I had removed her shirt, only that I was suddenly feeling her breasts bare beneath my fingers.

"Carlisle...God, don't stop...that feels so good." She threw her head back and arched her back, pushing the two supple orbs into my hands.

I pinched her hardened nipples and loved it when she responded with soft mewling and another moan of my name. Her hands were now buried in my hair, pulling me closer.

"Please, Carlisle," she whimpered. "Please..."

I let my hand wander down her body, reaching the top of her pants. "Please what, my love?" I flicked my tongue on her nipple and enjoying how her body reacted to my touch. "Tell me."

"I want...you." Her voice broke mid-sentence.

It might have had something to do with the fact that I had pushed my hand to cup her sex.

"You want me...to do what?" I was no longer the gentleman that was born and raised in the seventeenth century. I was the three centuries old vampire who wanted nothing more than to devour his mate. "Tell me what you want," I demanded. I kept passing my fingers on her clothed sex, teasing her.

"I want your fingers...your mouth...I want to feel you inside me."

"Your wish is my command."

Her pants were thrown to the other side of the room in less than one eighth of a second. I sat back on my knees, feasting my eyes on her beautiful body, clad in nothing but a pair of white cotton panties. The innocent garment was more seductive than any lace could ever be.

"You are so beautiful," I whispered, my fingers tracing the sides of her body. Her caramel colored hair was spread like a fan on the pillows that had never been used before. It felt so right having her in my arms, in my bed.

I leaned down to capture her mouth again, covering her body with mine, and pouring all of my love into the kiss.

Esme's fingers made quick work of the button and zipper of my slacks, and her feet pushed the fabric down my legs, taking my boxers along with them. She hitched her leg around my waist and bucked her hips, pressing the warmth of her clothed core against my naked skin.

"I want you so much."

"Take me," she whispered.

I wanted to thrust inside her with all the force that was locked inside me. I removed the last piece of clothing from her body, and when the scent of her arousal was released into the air, my demon roared inside me, almost taking over. I had enough presence of mind to lower my hand and make sure she was ready for me.

"Carlisle!" she screamed and her head fell back when I inserted one finger inside the wet folds of her sex. She was more than ready for me. I inserted a second finger and let my thumb press lightly against the sensitive nub at the top of her folds. "Yes," she whimpered. "More...please."

I let my fingers move in and out of her body in three long caresses, and I could hold no longer.

She mewled when I took my fingers away. When I pressed the head of my cock to her entrance and completed our union, she screamed with pleasure, and her legs locked in a vice grip around my waist.

It was heaven, being inside her, surrounded by the slick warmth of her body. My hands held her waist, my head buried in the crook of her neck, and my body began to move with hers in an ancient dance.

She was everything that I had ever dreamed of and so much more. Her hands held me close, pressing my body against hers. Her pelvis moved in a perfect synchronization with my thrusts. Her face, just like mine, was buried in the crook of my neck, and I moaned when I felt her licking and nibbling on my skin.

There was nothing but us in the world, nothing but the feeling of her body, the unique scent that was all Esme, and the wonderful noises that came from within her. I quickened our movements, no longer satisfied with the deep slow thrusts. I felt breathless and heard Esme panting as we each approached the sweetest peak.

My lips came across the bite mark on her neck. _Edward's mark._

Suddenly, I could tolerate it no more. The primitive beast inside me could not accept another male's mark on _my_ mate. I needed her to bear my mark in more than just removable symbols.

I waited until I felt her body begin to pulse around mine, using every ounce of self-control that I had to keep my own release at bay and my own beast restrained. I would not bring her pain, not if I could help it.

Esme screamed my name when she fell over the edge, and I sank my teeth onto her neck at the same moment as her body shivered in spasms of pleasure, replacing Edward's mark with my own. I was licking the wound closed by the time Esme was coming down from her high. I gave one last thrust inside her and let the control I had over my body fall, allowing my own climax to wash upon me.

Only a small part of my mind registered the short, sharp tear of my skin when Esme's teeth made a mark of their own on my neck. I collapsed on top of her, but kept most of my weight on my elbows. My head rested in the crook of her neck, and I felt my chest vibrate in a satisfied purr.

As the fog of lust and desire slowly began to fade, I noticed that I was not the only one purring. The sound coming from Esme was even more beautiful than the way she moaned my name. For several seconds, I felt completely spent—both the man and the monster fully sated.

_She carries my mark,_ the beast purred with satisfaction, _and she has marked me in return._

I opened my eyes to see the earring bearing my family's crest just a little above the eternal mark made by my teeth. _She is truly mine._

I lifted myself up just a little to see the face of my beloved. Her eyes were shining, and I imagined that my own eyes were doing the same.

"I love you, my Esme," I whispered.

"I love you, my Carlisle," she answered with a wide smile gracing her lips.

Our bodies were still joined together, and I felt no desire to ever move away. "Forever."

"Forever."

* * *

**I hope you've enjoyed Carlisle and Esme's moment together. It was about time those two made their move.**

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	27. Sunday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Edward**

I had to give Emmett credit. He waited until we were several miles away from Forks before he asked.

_So what's the real deal behind this sudden hunting trip? Are you planning on finally deflowering Bella?_ He wiggled his eyebrows.

I laughed. The annoyance I felt from his line of thought was secondary to the amusement I found in his gesture.

"No. In fact, this has nothing to do with Bella," I answered calmly.

He was silent for a while, his thoughts wandering to the upcoming hunting trip and then to the sudden absence of Alice and Jasper, without saying a word.

"They went for a weekend getaway," I answered the question in his thoughts.

"You know, I was wondering..." _Do you think Jasper can make a girl come without touching her?_

"I don't know." I shrugged.

_Maybe I should ask him..._

"You can try, but be prepared to be lusting over Mike Newton as payback."

Emmett visibly shuddered. "That's not funny, bro, not even as a joke."

I chuckled. "Sure it's funny."

_Maybe I should ask Alice._

I burst out laughing. "You do _not_ want to be doing _that_ , either."

"Why not?" He frowned.

"Alice can be much more creative with her vendettas, _and_ she can still ask Jasper to make you lust after some random guy."

"Okay, okay, I get it." _I'm still curious though._

"He probably can," I said. "But if you want to ask him, it's your funeral." I shrugged.

"So, is there a point to this hunting trip? I don't mind going..." _But I want in on the secret!_

One of the things I liked most about Emmett was that he said what was on his mind. He didn't edit, which was probably what got him in trouble most of the time. It was refreshing.

"I'm sure you can figure it out if you think about it."

_Carlisle and Esme?_

I nodded.

"It's about bloody time," he said and rolled his eyes.

"I don't know if they are going to 'do the deed'"—Emmett huffed at my use of the term—"but he wanted to spend a little time alone with her."

_That's good. He's really good for her._

"I agree. Carlisle's one of the good guys."

_He is._

Emmett's thoughts went back to the hunting trip and possible game, so I tuned him out and let myself drown in memories of the picnic with Bella. She was so beautiful in the sunlight...moaning over the food I had prepared for her...moaning my name as I made her come. I felt my body react to the perfectly recalled memories when Emmett's voice pulled me out of my pleasant thoughts.

"Edward! Yo, man. What's got you thinking so hard?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrow again.

This time I scowled at him. "Nothing."

_Must be one hell of a 'nothing' to get you all hot and bothered._ He laughed.

"Just drive, Emmett."

_Are you going to tell me how it went with Bella?_

I ignored him.

_That good, huh?_ He had a grin on his face, and his mind began conjuring images of Bella and me in different positions. I was about to smack him over the back of his head when his thoughts began to trail to picturing Bella naked, but then he shuddered and shook the thoughts away. _That's one picture I don't want in my head,_ he thought.

"That's one picture you better never _have_ in your thoughts," I warned him.

"Don't worry. I love Bella as a little sister, and I definitely don't want to picture her that way...or you, for that matter." His face contorted with disgust.

"Tell me something else," I said, quickly changing the subject.

_Like what?_

"What are we going to do with Lauren?" Then I remembered who I was talking to and added, "Remember that we can't physically hurt her."

"Bummer." _And I was really enjoying picturing feeding her to the sharks._

"Where will you find those?" I chuckled.

_The zoo? I don't know._ "I haven't thought that far."

"Good. Don't."

We went over several different plans that Emmett had come up with, some more gruesome than the others, but eventually we managed to come up with something fitting. It was in a good timing, too, as we had just arrived at our destination and Emmett parked the jeep.

w.W.w

Hunting with Emmett was always fun. He was one who liked playing with his food, and the juvenile enthusiasm he possessed was always enjoyable. He was pleased to find a bear at this time of year. I wasn't really thirsty, so I settled for some small carnivores before we both started heading back toward home. It was still early, and I really did want to give Carlisle and Esme more time together.

"Emmett, take a right on the next exit," I said when a sudden inspiration hit me.

_Seattle?_ "Why?"

"I have an apartment in the city where we can take a shower and have a change of clothes," I explained. "I want to give Carlisle and Esme more time."

_Did you look at yourself in the mirror lately?_ "There's no way I'm fitting into your clothes."

"That's what they invented shops for, Emmett." I rolled my eyes. "I'll go out while you are in the shower and bring you something to wear."

"Fine." _As long as it's not pink, I'm good._

"What makes you think I'll get you something pink?" I asked, feigning hurt.

"I know you." He huffed. _And you've spent way too much time around Alice. The little vampire loves to torment me sometimes._

I laughed. "Don't let her hear you say that."

_Don't you dare!_ He glared at me.

I raised my hands in surrender, still laughing. "Cross my heart and hope to die."

"You're already dead." He huffed.

w.W.w

I did end up getting Emmett a pink shirt—I just couldn't resist taunting him a little—as well as a normal navy one, as I could honestly relate to his distaste for the color pink. Once we were both dressed, we took a trip to the city. It was still early, and considering the fact that it was a Sunday, the streets were empty as expected.

Thankfully, we were able to pick up all the supplies we would need to execute our plan for Lauren's retribution despite the relatively early hour. Once we were done, I suggested that Emmett spent the rest of the morning and some of the afternoon with me and Bella, then we could all go back to the house together, thus giving Esme and Carlisle as much "alone-time" as possible.

Emmett loved the idea. He enjoyed the fact that I didn't "hog the human" as he so eloquently put it. The last thing that we needed to do was to decide where we would go and what we would do.

"How about we go to an arcade?" Emmett suggested.

"Emmett, we're trying to find something Bella might enjoy, not you."

He seemed deflated. _She might enjoy it too._

"And you might enjoy a brand new pink wardrobe."

_Not happening!_ he shouted in his thoughts."How about raspberry picking?"

"It's not the season for raspberries."

He growled. Luckily, it was too low for the humans around us to hear. "Well, I'm running out of ideas here." He folded his arms across his chest and frowned. "You come up with something."

"How about the Space Needle?"

"If she's not afraid of heights it might work," he agreed. "And while we're there, we can catch a movie at the IMAX."

"Sounds like a good idea." I was anxious to get back to Bella. I knew that it was more than likely that she was awake by now, and even if she wasn't, she probably would be by the time we made it back to Forks.

"You just want to get back to see your mate," Emmett tried to tease me.

"So?" I shrugged. I wasn't embarrassed or ashamed by my will to be next to my mate. It was one of our most basic instincts.

"So, you're whipped," Emmett declared. "And I'm driving."

"No, you're not," I said calmly and stepped to the driver's side of the jeep.

"Want to wrestle me for that?" he asked with much enthusiasm.

I had to shake my head at him. Emmett was apparently channeling his inner five-year-old. "No. For two reasons."

_What two reasons?_

"First, we're in public; and second, I have the keys," I said with a grin, opening the door and sliding into the driver's seat.

Emmett grumbled something about me cheating but walked to the other side and got in as well.

_Edward's no fun. At least I'll have Bella to tease_.

"She does have an adorable blush when you tease her," I commented, remembering the way her face was so beautifully flushed after our picnic. _Yes, she definitely has a beautiful blush._

Emmett laughed. "And I thought I was the one with his mind in the gutter. Careful or the title will be transferred to you."

I rolled my eyes. "Emmett, you really don't want to start comparing your mind to mine."

_Oh, really?_ "And why is that?"

"Because it will only result in you pouting, and that's not a pretty sight."

"Are you saying that your mind is dirtier than mine? No way!"

I chuckled at his disbelief. "I think my _past_ is dirtier than your mind, Emmett."

_Okay, now I really DO want the details._ _Spill!_

"Oh, where do I start?" I was really enjoying taunting Emmett; it was just too easy to get a reaction out of him.

"I have an idea." He grinned in mischief. "How about you tell me about that 'compromising position' in which you found out the information about that oath."

I could see the way he was picturing me in his mind—a brooding prude that wouldn't know much about sex. He thought that I must have tried the missionary with Francesca and that a hand-job was the limit of my fantasies.

"You're underestimating me, Emmett," I warned him.

_What, did she give you a blowjob? That's not very dirty._

Emmett was definitely challenging me, and while it might have been a 'mine is bigger than yours' pissing contest, I wasn't one to run away from a challenge.

So I told him about my last day in Volterra—in great detail.

"You did _not_ tell her _that_!" he shouted. _'_ _I expect you to be gone before I finish it.' That's cold, bro!_

"Yes, I did say that. She was a nuisance, and I didn't want her in my room when I was out of the shower." I shrugged.

Emmett huffed. "That only proves that you can be a jerk. I should tell you about that nomad we once crossed." His mind was filled with images of a blonde vampire with bright red irises, on her knees in a room that looked like a bedroom. "Now _that_ vamp had a mouth like a hoover!" His thoughts turned more graphic, and I decided to tune them out. Swapping stories was one thing, getting an inside look into his jeans was another.

"There's a lot to be said in favor of female vampires," I said. "Number one would be the lack of a gag reflex."

_I'm with you there, bro._ "But still. I can beat you there."

"I'd say we're even on that one," I argued.

"Even shmeaven," he grumbled. "Multiple partners?" he asked, curiosity flooding his thoughts.

I nodded. Those were not rare in Volterra, either, especially in my earlier days as a vampire. The sex drive was almost as hard to control as the thirst was sometimes. Being turned at eighteen had contributed greatly to that.

"How many?" Emmett frowned.

"Four."

His frown deepened. _You have me beat in that department._ "I bet you've never been with a human before." Then he added, "And the human survived the encounter." His thoughts brightened at the prospect of beating me. He knew that he didn't seem the type to be able to handle a human in the sack and thought that with my way of "upbringing," there was no way I tried a human and the human lived to tell the tale.

"Well, that depends on your definition of survived."

_Ha! I got you!_ "Survived as in living and breathing after you're finished." He grinned.

"Actually, she _did_ survive the sex, but she didn't get to leave Volterra." I paused. "But I am curious. When did _you_ get to bed a human?"

"When I was one." Emmett grinned.

"Smartass." I huffed. "I meant as a vampire, and you know it, you big oaf!"

Emmett laughed, enjoying the sight of me frowning and scowling.

"I'm not scowling," I mumbled under my breath.

"Oh, yes, you are." His grin was impossibly even wider than before.

"Whatever. You're avoiding the question," I pointed out. The glee in his thoughts covered anything that might be related to the human encounter that he claimed to have had.

"Well, _my_ human survived _and_ walked away unharmed."

I saw the memories in his mind of a big-busted blonde that was clearly human. "What is it with you and blondes?"

"Don't you know?" Emmett grinned both in thoughts and on the outside. "Blondes have more fun."

"That's just a figure of speech."

"Maybe. I wouldn't know; I was never blonde myself."

"Could have fooled me," I taunted. "I think you might have been born a blonde and your hair just darkened with time."

"At least I don't have permanent sex hair," he threw back.

"Fortunately for me, the female gender seems to like it as it is."

"Don't you mean _Bella_ likes it as it is?" _And you still haven't told me what went on between the two of you on that picnic._

"And I'm not going to." I ignored the first half of his comment.

_You're no fun_.

"Liar," I said calmly.

Emmett burst into a booming laughter.

"Told ya." I smirked.

w.W.w

Bella was thrilled to see Emmett and I arrive at her doorstep a little after ten o'clock. Charlie had already left for his shift, and she was looking at a day filled with chores if we hadn't shown up. I was pleased to hear that she told Charlie about me being her boyfriend. I had been anxiously waiting for her to be ready to tell him that. It was an important milestone in our relationship.

I was surprised to hear that Alice had invited Charlie over to our place for dinner on Monday. She mentioned nothing of the sort when we had spoken on the phone. That was one event I was _not_ looking forward to—the prospect of having to pretend to eat or maybe even actually eating was enough to make my stomach curl. On the other hand, Charlie wanted to meet me officially, so that was a good sign. I wasn't expecting him to shoot me the moment he found out that I was Bella's boyfriend, but I had prepared for such a scenario, and I was happy to be mistaken on that one.

Emmett, Bella, and I spent a wonderful afternoon in Seattle. It turned out that Bella wasn't afraid of heights and that she had never been to the observation deck on the Space Needle. The movie at the IMAX after that was another new experience for her. I was determined to give her as many new experiences as I possibly could. I didn't want her to feel limited because of my lack of a heartbeat.

Emmett eventually convinced her to go to an arcade. It was more like guilt tripping her into going, but she had fun watching him breaking several records on the gaming cabinets. Around half past five, just as the sun was setting and the air began to chill, we decided to head home.

Bella fell asleep with her head on my lap during the drive back home, which allowed Emmett to push the jeep to its limit and make the four-hour trip in just two and half. I knew Bella wasn't keen on high speeds, so we tried to keep at least close to the speed limit while she was awake.

I called Carlisle's cell phone from the road to let him know that we were on our way back. He sounded absolutely blissful. I refrained from asking questions about his night, mostly because Emmett was less than two feet away in the front seat, but I felt certain that things went well.

I felt honored that he wished to ask for my blessing before proposing to Esme. I didn't feel that it was my place to do so, as I was neither her father nor her guardian, but I felt honored nonetheless. Also, it had proved to me once again how much of an honorable man Carlisle was.

During our conversation, I mentioned that Bella was coming back with us and asked Esme if she could arrange something for her to eat.

I got a scolding for it.

" _Edward Anthony Masen Cullen!_ " I knew I was in trouble as soon as Esme had used my full name. _"I love Bella like my own daughter. You don't need to ask if it won't be a bother for me to make her dinner! Of course it won't! Now get your ass over here; Carlisle and I have some news to share._ "

All I could say after that was, "Yes, ma'am."

I heard Carlisle's laughter and then Esme hung up.

_You just got your ass handed to you, bro_. Emmett's thoughts were gloating.

I shrugged. Hearing Esme cursing was funny, and I knew that she wasn't really upset.

_What news do you think they have?_

I kept my expression innocent and shrugged again. I busied myself with threading my fingers through the soft mahogany locks of Bella's hair.

_Usually when humans say, "We have news to share," it means they're pregnant._ Emmett chuckled. _I don't think Carlisle has had the chance to knock her up yet._

I looked at him through the rearview mirror and rolled my eyes.

_What? It's funny, and you know it!_

"That's not a funny subject, Emmett," I hissed under my breath. I knew that he wasn't aware of the full story to Esme's human life, but it was still a tender subject, and he shouldn't have joked about it.

This time Emmett was the one to roll his eyes at me. _Well, we're going to find out soon enough. It's only about thirty miles till we're back at the house._

I nodded and moved my attention back to Bella for the rest of the drive.

w.W.w

**Bella**

Esme looked radiant when she greeted us. I shot several curious glances toward Edward, wondering what was up, but he just smiled and kept quiet. Emmett looked to be just as baffled as I was for the first few seconds, but then he looked at Esme and broke into a huge grin. I saw he was about to open his mouth to say something, but Edward punched him in the arm and told him to shut up.

I noticed that Carlisle appeared to be somewhere between happy and nervous, while Alice was even more bouncy than usual. Jasper kept his arms around Alice and watched her with so much tenderness in his eyes that I felt myself smile, but when I saw him nuzzling her neck I blushed and averted my gaze. I heard Jasper chuckling at me and felt him sending me a wave of calmness.

Esme had prepared dinner for me to eat, and everyone joined me at the kitchen table. It wasn't unusual for them to do so—they loved sitting with me as I ate—but unlike previous occasions, I sensed that this time it was different. My suspicions were confirmed when Carlisle cleared his throat and said that there was something he would like to share with us.

I heard a loud bang and Emmett cry, "Ouch!"

Alice giggled, and I looked at Edward with astonishment. _What did he do that for?_

"Emmett's mouth is sometimes too big for his own good," Edward whispered in my ear. "Please continue, Carlisle."

"I'm sure most of you already know what I am about to say." Carlisle smiled. He took Esme's hand in his, and suddenly I noticed that she had a ring on her left hand, one that she didn't have the last time I saw her. "Yesterday, I asked Esme to marry me, and she accepted."

I think Esme would have blushed if she could. They both seemed to be glowing.

Alice squealed so loudly it hurt my ears and ran to give Esme a hug.

Emmett gave his version of a man-hug to Carlisle and a softer one to Esme, followed by Jasper and Edward.

"Congratulations," I said with a wide smile of my own as I approached to give them a hug myself. "I knew there was something going on between you two."

Jasper laughed at my statement. "I think we all did."

I went back to sit on the barstool. Edward sat next to me and caressed my back absentmindedly. I loved feeling his touch and knew that if I were a cat I would be purring loudly whenever he touched me.

"Also, there is something I would like to give each and every one of you," Carlisle said once everyone went back to their places.

Alice and Edward wore matching grins on their faces.

"I want you to know that I consider each and every one of you as a member of my family," Carlisle said in a voice filled with emotion. "While we are not related by blood or venom, we are related by our emotions, and I wanted to give you a symbol of that."

Esme handed him a small bag and smiled lovingly.

"During my human years, it was a custom for each family to have their own family crest and for each member of that family to carry it with him, in some form or another. Esme," he turned to look at her with a loving smile, "is already wearing her own." He brushed her hair aside, showing her earrings.

I assumed that the earrings carried the crest on them, but I was too far to see for certain.

"Jasper, Alice." Carlisle turned to the couple, standing on his right. "You brought me the most important thing when you found me on that day in May—hope. Today, I hope that you will accept this small token from me."

Alice let Jasper take the bag while she gave Carlisle another tight hug. "Thank you, Carlisle," she said with tears in her eyes.

Jasper bowed his head in respect, a small smile on his lips. He didn't open the bag until Alice had joined him again, and when he did, he pulled out two boxes, one much larger than the other.

Alice quickly opened the smaller of the two boxes and put the jewelry on her, using her vampire speed. It was a choker with a round crest in the middle. Jasper's box contained a black leather belt with a buckle that featured the same crest.

"I noticed that you tend to wear belts often, and I thought it would fit you most," Carlisle explained.

"Thank you." Jasper smiled. "It does."

Carlisle then took another bag from Esme and pulled out two matching boxes. "Emmett, Edward." He turned to his left, looking at the guys. "I can't thank you enough for bringing Esme into my life, but more than that, you've come to be two amazing companions. Emmett, you never fail to lighten the mood and remind us not to be so serious all the time. Edward, you are a trained fighter when time calls for it, but more importantly, you are a good listener—a quality that is very rare to find in a person." He handed them the two boxes. "It took me a while to think of something that would fit you two, and I hope that the answer I came up with suits you."

I watched Edward as he took out a short strip of leather with the Cullen crest displayed proudly in the middle. I didn't understand what it was until he put the piece of leather on his wrist—a wrist cuff.

Edward and Emmett wore matching grins and bumped their fists, earning them chuckles from the rest of us.

"Thanks, Carlisle," Emmett said.

"Thank you, Carlisle," Edward said.

"And last, but definitely not least, Bella." Carlisle looked at me, and I felt myself blush. "You are the most recent addition to our family, but never doubt that you _are_ part of our family. I remember meeting you for the first time, a meeting for which you were unfortunately not conscious"—he gave a small chuckle, and I felt my blush deepen—"and I remember liking you from that first moment. You are a very unique person, and I feel honored to be able to consider you part of my family. I know that you are not one for fancy jewelry, but I hope that you will wear this one."

Esme was the one to hand me the last bag, and I felt tears falling on my cheeks as I took it hands and accepted another hug from her.

"Both Carlisle and I consider you a daughter, Bella," she whispered in my ear as she held me. "I hope you know that."

I nodded, unable to speak at that moment. My hands shook as I took the box from the bag and opened it. Inside was a silver bracelet with a round ornate crest. It was delicate and yet had a presence that could not be ignored.

I didn't hesitate to put on the bracelet. As soon as the metal touched my skin, I was overcome with emotions—pride, awe, love, kindness, honor...so many emotions that I had to wonder for a moment at how Jasper was able to handle being in the same room with me. I lifted my gaze to check and saw that he was absolutely absorbed in Alice, with a smile so wide on his lips that it could almost be considered a grin.

I looked around me, at the people whom I considered my family—my second set of parents and my siblings—and saw the kaleidoscope of joyful emotions reflect in each and every one of their faces. Edward mimicked Jasper's pose and wrapped his arms around my waist. I felt him sigh in content, and leaned my head against his chest. I had to correct my previous conclusion, there was one person in this room whom I definitely did _not_ see as my family member—I could never look at Edward as a brother.

Edward looked down and saw me looking at him. He gave me a loving smile and bowed his head to give me a chaste kiss. He may not be a brother to me—and thank god for that—but he felt like home.

w.W.w

Emmett refused to tell me exactly what he was planning for tomorrow. He said that it would look a lot more credible if I was taken by surprise just like the rest of the students. But he did assure me that, other than causing Lauren great embarrassment, there would be no lasting damage.

I was still uneasy and feeling a little guilty for whatever it was that Lauren was about to suffer because of me.

"There's no need to feel guilty, Bella," Jasper said, and I felt myself relax. "Believe me when I say that this is a very mild punishment in comparison to the one that Lauren actually deserves."

"I think you are overlooking the fact that she had tried to hurt you and almost succeeded in causing great physical damage," Edward reminded me. "You're lucky to have ended up with a twisted ankle. I don't even want to imagine what would have happened to you had I not been there to catch you."

I couldn't help the shiver that passed through my body. I didn't like imagining that either. He hugged me tighter, and I felt him plant a kiss on my hair.

"Okay, so what do I have to do tomorrow?" I asked.

"Absolutely nothing." Emmett grinned.

"Yes, Bella, let us handle all the dirty work." Jasper smiled.

It was an unnerving smile, and I sensed that I would never want to be on the receiving end of Jasper's revenge. He, of course, sensed my unease and sent me another wave of calmness, telling me in his own subtle way that I had nothing to worry about.

"Fine," I said. "I'll let you handle it. Just make sure you don't get caught." They laughed, and I turned to look at Edward. "I don't want you getting detention and spoiling your clean record over me." I winked and enjoyed hearing him laugh again.

"Don't worry, my love. I think we can manage to avoid getting detention." He smiled reassuringly at me, and I was momentarily caught in his gaze. His eyes were brilliantly golden today, shining like pure molten metal. I barely noticed Emmett leaving the room, saying something about going for a walk. I was too preoccupied by the darkening hue in Edward's eyes just before my own eyes closed and I felt his lips touch mine.

w.W.w

**Emmett**

Ugh, lovesick Edward with Bella on his lap. I saw the gooey eyes she gave him and knew that I was about to get a front row seat to the Edward and Bella make-out session. _No, thank you._

I glanced at Jasper and saw that he was so affected by their emotions that he was dragging an all-too-willing Alice up the stairs. _Double ugh!_

"I'm going out for a walk," I called to the center of the room, wondering if anyone was paying enough attention to even hear me, and left out of the front door.

I found it harder these days, living in a house with three lovesick couples. I was happy for Esme. She had been very lonely for years. She deserved a mate, and Carlisle was about as good as they get. But when Edward found Bella, I felt a little like I had lost my best friend. Today was nice, hunting alone with him and then hanging out with him and Bella in Seattle, but it wasn't the same as having my own mate.

At the end of the day, Edward and Bella had each other and didn't really need or want me around. Jasper had Alice and now Esme had Carlisle. I had no one.

I made my way east toward the Olympic National Park. I had no intention of hunting. I had my fill on the trip with Edward. I just wanted to clear my head a little and stay away from the house for a few hours.

I ended up on the shore of a small lake somewhere in the middle of the park. It was a dark night and a cold one at that. It reminded me a lot of that night in January, seventy years ago. I couldn't remember why I was out and about that night, or why I was alone at that, but it was the first night I had seen my angel.

The pain of the injuries I sustained from the bear and the burning of the venom in my veins was successful in erasing most of my memories but not the image of my angel's beautiful face. I asked David about her after waking up, but he said that he had not seen anyone around me other than the bear. I searched the area for several days before I noticed David watching me with pity. He thought I was imagining things.

After a few weeks had passed with no results, I began to lose hope. Six months later,, I began to accept that I might have been imagining her. Two years later, I was certain that I was delusional from the burn of the venom.

A decade had passed and I pushed all thoughts of the angelic blonde with dark eyes to the back of my head. We were just outside of Ithaca, New York hunting. We separated and I followed the scent trail of a mountain lion up north. I didn't find the cat; instead, I found a small lake—much like the one I was looking at right now—and my angel on the other side of it.

She was even more beautiful than she was in the memory I had of her, but I had no doubt that it was her. She was tall and statuesque, with long blonde straight hair blowing in the wind. Her eyes were dark, and I couldn't see their color from where I was standing.

I moved to come closer and she moved away, so I halted. She stayed a few seconds more and then disappeared between the trees.

I tried chasing after her but could find no scents but those belonging to the forest, no tracks but animal tracks and no evidence that she was ever there.

I saw her several more times during the years. Always when I was alone. Never did she say a word to me, nor did she allow me to approach her. It wasn't until we met Carlisle that I learned her name.

Rosalie.

w.W.w

**Rosalie**

I watched Emmett sitting on the lakeshore and my heart ached. His eyes reflected the loneliness that he felt. _Soon my love,_ I thought. _Soon I will be able to be with you._

I dared showing myself to him several times during the past seventy years. The first time was when I wanted to make sure that David reached him in time. The second was a decade later, when they were hunting north of Ithaca.

It was the first time that Gaia had agreed to let me show myself to him. It was forbidden for me to cross the border to the other side of the veil—Chronos had specified that in the terms of our deal—but I couldn't stop myself from begging before Gaia. It took me nine years to finally convince her, and it was under the strict order that I was not allowed to talk to him or let him approach me.

I was so desperate by then that I accepted the terms without question. I only had about seven minutes before Gaia called me back. Those seven minutes were pure heaven for me, and yet they were worse than the fire of the venom. Gaia took pity on me, I suppose, and allowed me to visit him several more times—under the same restrictions—over the years.

Whenever it was impossible for me to cross the invisible veil that separated his world from mine, I would watch him on the screen. I knew that he thought of me as his angel, and I thought that it was somewhat amusing. In my previous lifetime, I had thought of Carlisle as one.

It took almost seventy years for me to convince Gaia to let me speak to my family, and even then it was only for short periods of time. It was a risky thing to do. If Chronos were ever to find out that it was I—and not Gaia—who had made the trip, I would be severely punished and was likely to never see my family again.

I didn't dare risking it, not when I was so close to reaching my goal.

"Don't give up on your hope, Rosalie," Gaia said gently from behind me.

_I miss him so much_.

"I know and understand." She gave me a small understanding smile. "But it shouldn't be long now."

"How long?" I asked, despite knowing that she was not allowed to give me the answer.

Gaia looked at me with sad eyes and said nothing.

I sighed. _I'm going for a walk._

"Do not venture too far, child," Gaia said. Those were the same words she said every time I went outside, and as always, I nodded and left.

I made my way to the outside gardens. It was sunny, and the gardens looked as though they were painted by an artist. Orange, burgundy, and green combined to create a scene that was able to render one speechless. I was not in the right mood to notice the beauty of the garden today.

I tried to calm down, clear my mind of thoughts and just let the calm scenery wash over me, but it was to no avail. I jumped on my feet and left the gardens. I walked past the white and green halls and left the castle grounds all together. Once I was past the gate, I began to run.

I ran to the forest. I knew it was pointless, and still I ran. With all my strength, I pushed the ground beneath my bare feet and ran. I only stopped when I reached the small lake that was in the middle of it. It was very similar to where Emmett was sitting now, and yet it was nothing alike. I pictured him here beside me, with his strong arms wrapped around me, and those images made me want to cry again.

I looked at the lake and chanted the short incantation Gaia had taught me a while ago. The waters turned black at first, then dark gray, and finally the fog cleared from the waters, and I saw him again. He was still sitting next to the lake and it was still night over there.

Due to the thin curtain between our worlds, he couldn't see me. He couldn't smell me or touch me. He couldn't hold me, kiss me, or make love to me. There was nothing I wished for more than to be able to touch his face, caress the soft skin of his cheeks, thread my fingers through his hair, and drown myself in his scent.

I was miles from where he was.

I lied down on the cold ground beneath me. My eyes were still glued to the waters of the lake that served as a temporary screen, and I prayed that something would just pick me up and set me down in his arms.

My soul. My heart. My Emmett.

* * *

**Emmett, Edward, Jasper, and Alice all join forces to avenge Bella. What do you think awaits Lauren at school?**

**Rosalie's POV was inspired by the song, "Set Fire to the Third Bar".**

**Thank you for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!**

**Alley Cat.**


	28. Let the Games Begin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I was still a bit apprehensive about the whole plan, even though Edward had assured me that other than causing Lauren a great deal of embarrassment and probably landing her in detention for several days, she wouldn't be harmed.

I wasn't a vindictive person, and although Emmett thought I was being naïve, I generally believed in the basic goodness in people.

Therefore, by the time we arrived at school in the morning—Edward picking me up as was usual—I was a nervous wreck. Lauren arrived just a minute or two after us, so we were still in the parking lot when she bent down to her car to take her bag and the wind blew her skirt up, revealing her _bare_ bottom. She recovered quickly, but the damage was already done.

Emmett howled with laughter. "Hey, Lauren, is it laundry day or were you and Tyler planning on a quickie in the janitor's closet?" he called after her as she was hurrying away from the parking lot. The comment earned even more laughter from the few students that were still there, and I had no doubt that by lunch today the incident would be all over school.

I caught a silent exchange between Alice and Edward and instantly made the connection. "Alice?" I asked, looking at Edward.

"The one and only," he replied.

I shook my head. "Et tu, Alice?"

"It's still within your rules, Bella," Jasper said, in defense of his wife.

"You better get used to it, Bella," Emmett said. "There's plenty more where that came from."

"Let's get to class," I said as the warning bell sounded.

The guys agreed and we parted ways. Edward and I had English, Alice had Spanish and Jasper and Emmett shared History for their first period.

During class, I could already hear Jessica telling Mike about how Lauren had decided to go commando this morning. Mike wasted no time in sharing the news with Tyler, who was sitting next to him, and Rob, who sat behind the two, told them about Emmett's comment.

As Edward and I entered our Calculus classroom, I noticed Lauren and Jessica standing and arguing just outside the door. I couldn't hear everything that was said but from what I did manage to catch, Lauren was furious with Jessica for letting Tyler know about what happened in the morning. Apparently, things didn't go too well. Lauren was still seething when she went inside the classroom.

I should have remembered that Lauren also had first period History and that Emmett and Jasper wouldn't let that chance go to waste, because not five minutes into the lesson a wave of whispers began forming around her.

"What's going on?" I asked Edward in a whisper. "Emmett?"

"No, it was Jasper, actually," he said with a half-smile.

"What did he do?"

"Emmett calls it stinky spray," he said. "Jasper sprayed some on her as she was walking outside of the class."

I heard giggles coming from the other side of the classroom where Lauren was sitting. The whispers began growing louder and louder.

Then, suddenly, Edward chuckled and then coughed, trying to hide it.

"What?"

"Mike thought that maybe Lauren had shit her panties, but then he remembered she didn't wear any today," Edward said, still trying to stop himself from laughing out loud.

At this point, the teacher had had enough. "Is there something you would like to share with the rest of the class, Miss Stanley?" Mr. Varner asked, turning away from the board.

Jessica held her hand over her mouth, giggling, and shook her head, snorting in the process.

Lee Stephens, who sat right behind Lauren, decided to pipe in. "I think that Lauren has shared enough with the class…"

"Excuse me?" Mr. Varner looked baffled and on the verge of anger.

"Lauren stinks!" someone shouted, and the class burst into a fit of laughter. I even thought I saw Mr. Varner crack a smile before he caught himself.

"Mr. Varner apparently also heard about the pantie-less incident this morning." Edward leaned to whisper to me.

"Already?" _Wow, that was fast!_

"I guess good news travel fast." He snickered.

"That's mean," I grumbled.

He just shrugged.

Lauren's face appeared to be almost purple in color as she ran out of the classroom. She didn't even look back when Mr. Varner called after her.

"Here goes her first detention..." Edward said with a satisfied note to his voice.

I rolled my eyes at him, folding my arms over my chest.

"You look so cute when you're angry," he said, whispering the words in my ear and making me shiver.

_It's not fair that his voice could be so seductive when he does that!_

I couldn't stay angry with him for long, though, especially not when he was unleashing the full force of his golden eyes on me. "You're not playing fair," I grumbled.

"Never said I was, love," he said with another dazzling smile.

The rest of the lesson was much quieter and uneventful, that is, unless you counted Edward smiling like a bloody Cheshire cat.

When the lesson was over, Edward walked beside me to Spanish, but as we entered the building, he held me back.

"Watch this," he whispered.

I looked down the hall and saw Lauren, her face and hands covered with ugly brown stains. "What happened to her?"

My eyes followed her as she approached the class and stopped. She seemed to be looking for someone.

"It's called dirty soap. Alice helped us with that one," Edward replied. "I would recommend that you don't use the soap in the girls' bathrooms today," he added nonchalantly.

When Mike passed us, Lauren's eyes locked on him. Her face was probably purple again, but I couldn't be sure with all of the brown stains on it.

"You!" she screeched, and Mike halted.

His face was torn between amusement and fear when she lunged herself at him. He jumped back and held his hands before him.

"You did this!" she screamed at him. "I don't know how, but this is all _your_ fault!"

People started noticing her, and laughter erupted again. Mike was a well-known prankster, and it wasn't surprising that Lauren thought he was the one to blame.

Mike took another step back, still holding his hands in front of him, as Lauren advanced. "I had nothing to do with it, I swear," he managed to blurt out between fits of laughter.

I had to cover my mouth to hide my own giggles; it was just too funny. I felt sorry for Mike, though, he really had nothing to do with it, at least not this time around.

All of a sudden, I was feeling really sorry for Lauren. The guys might have thought she deserved punishment, but I couldn't just stand there. I knew I had a package of wet wipes in my bag, and I pulled it out, walking over to Lauren and Mike.

"Lauren!"

"What do _you_ want?" she hissed at me.

I offered her the wet wipes. "I thought you might want one or two." _Or ten…_

Lauren looked down at my hand and then back at my face. "This better not be some kind of a trick, bitch."

_Ouch!_

I heard a throat clearing from behind me and turned around to see Mrs. Goff standing not two feet away.

"We do not approve of that kind of language, Miss Mallory," Mrs. Goff said. "And it should go without saying that this sort of appearance isn't appropriate either." She gestured at Lauren's hands and face, and I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing.

Apparently, I wasn't the only one who found this to be funny; I could hear several other students' muffled laughter around us.

"Get cleaned up, Miss Mallory, and report to my office at the end of the day for detention."

"But—" Lauren tried to protest, but the stern look she got from Mrs. Goff stopped her. She grumbled as she took several wet wipes and started cleaning her hands and face.

"Thanks, Swan."

I could see that saying that was almost killing her and couldn't stop myself from smiling. "You're welcome, Mallory." I might have called her by a different name, but Mrs. Goff was still within earshot, and I wasn't too keen on keeping Lauren's company for detention today.

"Now get in class. All of you!" the teacher said, and we hurried through the door.

At first, the lesson seemed uneventful. Lauren was sending deadly glares toward Mike and Jessica, who kept snickering. But all it took was a short glance at Emmett's face—and the huge evil grin that was plastered on it—to know that things weren't going to continue being uneventful.

I was right. About half an hour into the lesson, I suddenly heard Jessica scream bloody murder, followed by the loud noise of a chair being dragged on the floor. Mrs. Goff stopped mid-sentence, and the entire class turned to look at Jessica to see what was wrong.

Jessica kept screaming and hid behind Mike.

It took me a few moments to understand that she was yelling something about a mouse.

"Remote controlled retractable, life-like mouse," Edward whispered in my ear before I could ask. "And here's how Lauren gets into the picture," he continued and gestured for me to look at her.

"Lauren, that's not very nice of you," Emmett called from behind her.

She turned to glare at him. "What are you talking about?"

"What seems to be the problem, Mr. Cullen?" the teacher asked.

"Take a look at Lauren's back pocket," he said and huffed.

Jessica leaned away from behind Mike to look at Lauren who stood up and turned around.

"See? There's nothing there!" Lauren said.

But she was wrong. Even with several feet and a desk between us, I could clearly see the mouse peeping out of the back pocket of Lauren's skirt.

"You…" I could see that Jessica really wanted to call Lauren something really nasty, but Mike held her back, clearly recalling the detention Lauren had gotten earlier for doing just that.

"I don't know where that came from! I swear!" Lauren yelled.

"Oh, really?" Mike asked in a harsh voice. "Then what's that inside your binder?"

"Nothing!" Lauren screeched.

"Miss Mallory, please open your binder," the teacher, who in the meantime made her way to their desk, asked.

"Here. Happy now?" Lauren asked sarcastically, once again putting her foot in her mouth.

There, sitting on top of her notes, was the empty plastic wrapper for the mouse.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Miss Mallory," Mrs. Goff said.

"But it wasn't me! I don't know how it got there!" Lauren tried to protest.

"I'm sure you don't," Mrs. Goff said sarcastically. "I think we're going to add a few more days of detention for you, young lady." Lauren was about to open her mouth but Mrs. Goff stopped her again. "Would you like to add a phone call to your parents too?"

"No," Lauren grumbled.

"Good." The teacher returned to the front of the class. "Sit down, everyone. Class isn't over yet."

"You guys are really evil," I said to Edward.

"Why, thank you."

I rolled my eyes at him. "I didn't mean that as a compliment."

"I know." He chuckled.

w.W.w

I was right. By lunchtime, the entire school was aware of what was now known as Lauren's commando mission, as well as the detention she had earned during the morning classes. Lauren didn't dare show her face in the cafeteria. I asked Edward if he knew where she was hiding.

"In the Library. I think it's the first time she has ever gone inside it."

I had to agree with that one.

"You guys rock," I said to no one in particular.

"Don't thank us just yet, Bella," Jasper said.

"Yeah, we got a few more tricks up our sleeves." Emmett grinned.

"No way!" I nearly shouted. I got a few heads turned my way and waited until they turned back before I continued speaking. "She's already in enough trouble as it is."

"Enough? She tried to kill you! Remember?" Jasper asked, incredulous.

"But, she didn't mean to!" I retorted.

"We're not being mean to her," Jasper said, earning him a glare. "Well, not much…," he corrected.

"Well, it doesn't matter now, anyway," Alice said, suddenly joining the conversation.

"Why not?" Jasper asked, surprised by the lack of support from his own wife.

"Lauren has decided to cut the rest of her classes for today," Alice explained.

"Damn!" Emmett was none too pleased by that piece of news. "And I was really looking forward to stuffing her locker with hundreds of live crickets…"

"You didn't!" I was appalled.

"No, I didn't," he grumbled. My relief was short lived, however, because the next thing that came out of his mouth was, "But I was going to."

My mouth dropped.

"It's not that mean, Bella." Jasper tried to defend his brother. "We would have loved beating her into a pulp and hanging her from her toes, but you were the one who placed the 'no physical harm' rule."

I stared at him, shocked, trying to decide whether or not he was pulling my leg.

Emmett burst into laughter when he saw my expression. Alice and Jasper followed suit.

I glanced at Edward and saw that he was trying his best to keep his face blank. "Not you, too!"

"I'm sorry, love, but you should have seen your face," he said. "Jasper was only joking, sweetheart."

"Yeah, right," I mumbled under my breath, forgetting for a moment that they could hear me just fine, and earned myself another round of laughter from everyone, including Edward.

I blushed and lowered my eyes to my tray. My lunch was suddenly the most interesting thing in the world to me.

The feeling of Edward's lips on my neck combined with his whispered words mollified me almost instantly. "I'm sorry, love. I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's okay. I'm not upset," I said with a sigh. "But I _am_ glad that Lauren decided to ditch. I've had enough for one day, and I'm sure she did, too."

"Sometimes, you're no fun, Bella," Emmett grumbled.

I leaned my head on Edward's shoulder as he gently squeezed me to his side.

Jasper and Emmett continued their banter, and I tuned them out while I ate. When the bell rang, Edward picked up and emptied my tray.

He still had his arm around my shoulders as we walked to Biology. When we sat down, he put it on my thigh. At first, his hand was still, but as the lesson progressed, he began moving it and painting random patterns on my thigh that were driving me crazy. Whenever I placed my hand on his fingers, he stopped, but a few minutes later, he began to move them again.

When the lesson was over, I was already burning with desire. Edward proved that he was in a similar state of mind; the moment we were out in the hallway, he pulled me into another empty classroom and had his lips on mine before the door was even completely shut.

He sucked on my bottom lip, drawing it in between his own and groaning in pleasure.

"God, how much I want you, Bella."

"Yes…" I moaned, fisting my fingers in his hair and pressing my body to his. I forgot about everything around me when his hands cupped my ass and raised me slightly so that I could feel firsthand the effect I had on him. I hitched my leg around his waist and heard him growl.

His hips bucked into me, creating the best form of friction I had ever felt. I remembered the wonderful climax he had given me not two days ago, and I wanted nothing more than to reach that peak once again.

Soon, much too soon for my liking, Edward pulled away from my lips. He kept his body still pressing me to the wall and leaned his forehead on mine.

"We have to stop, love, or we're going to be late for class," he said in a voice thick with desire.

I groaned. I didn't want to go to class, least of all gym. I wanted Edward.

"I know, love," he said. "I feel exactly the same." He emphasized his words with another press of his hardness into me before pulling away completely. "The last thing I want, though, is for your father to get a call because you were cutting classes." I looked at him, incredulous, when he suddenly smiled and added, "I don't think he's going to keep his gun away from me if he finds out that I was the reason for tarnishing your record."

I huffed. I wasn't going to tell _that_ to my dad.

"You can't lie to save your soul, love. Now, come on, Coach Clapp is waiting."

He had such a devilish grin on his face that I couldn't help but laugh.

"Fine," I took his hand into mine, "but you are _so_ going to pay for this!"

His grin widened, and his eyes filled with lust again. "I'm counting on it, my Bella."

"If you're going to continue looking at me like that, we're never going to get to class," I warned.

I was a little disappointed when he looked away and opened the door; for a moment, I didn't care about anything other than having another taste of Edward's lips, and possibly more than just his lips.

Edward groaned. "Bella love, please…"

"What did I do now?" I asked innocently.

"I can almost see the thoughts that are going through your mind and that's not really helping with my resolve."

I blushed and turned my eyes away from him. We were already in the hallway, and that was definitely not the place to tease him.

"Sorry," I breathed.

He pressed a kiss to my temple. "That's alright, love," he said with a smile in his voice. "It's nice to know that I have that kind of effect on you."

I rolled my eyes but decided to keep the rest of my thoughts to myself.

w.W.w

I was surprised to find Alice standing next to Edward's Audi when we got out of the gym. She wasn't looking at me, though. Her eyes were fixed on Edward, and they seemed to be having a silent conversation, one that didn't seem to be to Edward's liking as with each passing moment, his frown deepened.

Eventually he huffed, and Alice broke into a smile.

"What's going on?" I asked, looking at the both of them for answers.

"Alice has decided on a change of plans for this afternoon," Edward answered, and his tone told me that he was none too pleased about it.

At first, I thought he was referring to the dinner with Charlie, but then I recalled what happened before gym class and I blushed ten shades of red. It just occurred to me that Alice might have seen _that_ too. "I'm going to drop the two of you at your house, Bella, and she's going to help you get ready for dinner," Edward said.

"You're not staying?" I asked, alarmed.

Edward sent another glare at Alice who was now getting into the back seat before answering. "No, love."

"Why?" I didn't know why, but suddenly the prospect of being separated from him was almost too much to bear.

"Because Charlie is going to be home early. If I stayed, I don't think I will be able to keep my hands away from you, no matter who's watching us."

"Oh." I still didn't like it, but I could see the reason in his words.

"Don't worry, my love. We're going to see each other again tonight, and we're not parting just yet."

I managed a faint smile. Seeing him tonight wasn't going to be in private. It was going to be with my father preset, and that meant that I couldn't touch him and kiss him the way I would if we were alone.

Edward kissed me once again, careful not to get carried away this time, and opened the car door for me.

As soon as he had the engine started, he reached over the console and grabbed my hand. I suspected that I was growing addicted to his touch; the moment we made contact, I felt better than when we were apart. I felt whole and somewhat at peace.

Could it be that because we became so much closer during the weekend, physically as well as emotionally, that his absence was more profound? I didn't know, but I had the weird sense of dread as though I was about to lose him and soon.

I shook the thoughts away. I was probably just nervous about this dinner and nothing more than that.

"Are you okay, love?" Edward asked.

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, just got lost in my own mind a little." I smiled.

"It's the one place where I can't reach you, and that's where you go and hide…" Edward sighed dramatically, and I chuckled.

A few minutes later, he parked the car in my driveway and all three of us exited the car. I didn't want to let him go and the feeling was mutual. In fact, we were so absorbed with one another that Alice had to literally drag us apart.

"You'll see each other in four hours!" She huffed. "And don't give me that look, Edward Cullen!"

"I wasn't giving you a look." He looked innocent.

"You were going to, so don't!" Alice glared at him.

I giggled at their exchange and let her drag me towards the front door. "I love you," Edward mouthed to me.

"I love you too," I said in a whisper, knowing that he would hear.

"Yes, yes, you love each other. Now let's get inside," Alice said. "We only have a few hours to make you look gorgeous."

"I don't think that's enough time for a plastic surgery," I joked as I opened the door.

"Oh, shut it, Bella!" she said impatiently. "Now go upstairs and get that little tush of yours in the shower, or I'm going to put you there myself."

I ran to the stairs. Commander Alice was scary!

"And no argument about the clothes, either! Consider it an early birthday present," I heard her add as I made my way up the stairs.

I grabbed my bag of toiletries from my bedroom and went inside the bathroom. I was afraid to even think about the outfit that Alice was about to supply for me to wear. I already suspected, from the threatening tone she had used earlier, that it was going to be either a dress or a short skirt and that I wasn't going to like it.

While I was in the shower, I heard a knock on the bathroom door and Alice's voice saying, "Bella, I'm leaving a bag for you on the door handle. Wear it."

"Okay," I called back.

I waited for the door to close and then peeked around the shower curtain to see a small shopping bag with the words "La Perla" written on it. "Alice, if it's a thong I ain't wearing it!" I threatened after recognizing the brand.

"It's not," I heard her shout back. "And you are!"

I finished washing my hair and wrapped myself in a fluffy towel before taking a look inside the bag. I was pleasantly surprised to find a very basic set of bra and panties. I was expecting lace and lots of frills from Alice, so finding the plain black push-up bra and the low cut black panties inside the bag was a nice surprise. There was also a pair of stockings in there, which confirmed my suspicions that I was going to be forced into a short skirt. But the last item inside the bag had me baffled for several moments before I realized what it was.

"Isabella Marie Swan, don't even _think_ about arguing and just put it on!" Commander Alice called from behind the closed door.

"But Alice –"

"But nothing; put it on or I'm going to have to force you into it and you're not going to like that one bit." She threatened.

Be it anyone else, I might have continued to argue, but the little vampire was definitely capable of acting on her threat.

I wore the underwear first, then the stockings and finally held the garter belt in my hands and stared at it. It was made of lace and was actually not as bad as I thought it would be. It was just the idea of wearing one that was strange to me.

 _It's not as though anyone is going to see me in these, right?_ I thought as I put it on.

The damn thing did make me feel very sensual when I looked myself in the mirror. I wasn't sure how I felt about it though.

"Stop admiring yourself in the mirror and get your butt back in your room. I still need to do your hair and makeup."

I laughed. I couldn't help myself. Shaking my head and wrapping myself in my towel again, I made my way out of the bathroom and into my bedroom.

Sure enough, there was a dress laid across my bed.

"Alice, I'm going to freeze in a short dress," I tried to protest. I already knew that I would end up losing the argument, but I had to at least try.

"Oh, bollocks!"

I stared at her.

"Bollocks, Alice? Really?" I giggled. Not only it was a crude word, but it was a British crude word at that. Alice, the Mississippi girl, using British slang? _When did_ that _happen?_

Alice lost her frown and was soon giggling along with me. "What can I say, Carlisle rubs off on me," she shrugged

"Carlisle?" That was even funnier. "Since when does _Carlisle_ even _know_ such words, let alone use them?" I was laughing so hard that I felt my tummy starting to hurt. "It's all that daytime television you're watching," I accused her.

"Rubbish!" Alice exclaimed with a perfect English accent, sending me into another fit of giggles.

It took us several minutes to calm down and for me to catch my breath.

"Just try it on, Bella. I promise you won't object as much once you see how it looks when it's on you," Alice said.

"All right, let me have it," I said and she picked the dress from the bed and handed it to me.

At a closer look, I saw that the dress was knit and quite warm, so that was one problem solved. I pulled in over my head and Alice helped me pull my hair out of the collar and guided me to the full-length mirror on the inside of my closet door.

The dress wasn't as short as I had feared it would be, it ended just a little above my knees, and the design was very simple. There were no frills or ribbons, no sequins either. Just plain black with two pockets on the skirt—one on each side of the dress. The pockets were a welcome addition, it meant that I wouldn't have to carry a purse with me and worry about not forgetting it somewhere. The dress had some excess fabric that folded over and created a collar that wasn't too revealing.

 _It probably didn't look that impressive on the rack_ , I thought as I turned to look at the way the dress hugged my form. The push-up bra that I was wearing had given me quite the cleavage and the feel of the fabric of my lingerie under the dress made me feel very sexy.

I glanced to look at Alice and saw her face beaming. The little minx knew I would like it all along, of course.

"Now go sit on the chair and let me do your hair and makeup."

"Alice, we still have three hours before we have to leave."

"Two and a half actually, which doesn't leave me much time to get you ready, get home and make sure everyone is dressed _and_ be ready myself before you and Charlie show up on our doorstep."

"When _is_ Charlie coming home, by the way?" I asked as I sat on the chair she had set in front of my desk. The desk had a scary-looking chest-like bag on it that I imagined must have carried all of Alice's "equipment".

"He'll be home in thirty minutes," Alice answered and plugged in the blow drier. "I picked out some clothes for him and laid them on his bed. When he comes home and sees how you're dressed tell him that you have his own outfit there."

"What is he wearing?" I asked dryly

"A nice pair of dark jeans and a navy blue button down shirt. It's not too fancy for him to feel uncomfortable, but it's dressy enough so he won't feel underdressed next to the rest of us."

"Alice, how am I going to explain the clothes to him?"

"Tell him that you found them in the back of his closet."

I snorted. I was certain that the only thing in the back of Charlie's closet were more flannel shirts.

"I'm actually telling you the truth, you idiot." Alice sounded a little angry. "Now, can we please stop talking and get your hair dried?"

I chuckled. "All right." It was for the best if I didn't know otherwise, really. Because not only was I a terrible liar, but having a cop for a father didn't make lying to him any easier.

It took Alice fifteen minutes to have my hair completely dry. When she was done with it, she took out a hair iron and began curling my hair. It was a lengthy process, and she was just a little more than half way through when I heard Charlie arrive.

"Bells?" he called from downstairs.

"I'm up here, Dad," I answered. "Alice Cullen is here to help me get ready."

As I listened to Charlie hustle about, taking off his gun and coat, a thought occurred to me. "Alice, what are we going to tell Charlie about how you got here and how you're getting back home?" I couldn't tell him she would be running home, could I?

Alice smiled an all-knowing smile and moved on to the next lock of hair that needed curling. "Jasper dropped me off after school, and he's picking me up in forty five minutes from now."

She sounded so sincere that I almost believed her myself, despite knowing perfectly well that Jasper did no such thing.

"Does Jasper know that he is picking you up?"

"Yes, he does." She gave me another grin. "While you were taking your time with your shower, I called him."

I was about to ask her when did she have time to bring the clothes over but heard Charlie making his way up the stairs. Alice had gone through two more locks of hair before he knocked on my door.

"Come in, Dad."

Charlie smiled when he saw us. "Hi, Bells. Hi, Alice."

"Hello, Mr. Swan," Alice said politely.

"Call me Charlie, please," he said.

"Alice is helping me get ready," I repeated my explanation to him. "I picked out an outfit for you, as well. It's lying on your bed." I decided that the direct approach would be the best.

"I can dress myself, Bells." Charlie wasn't happy.

I gave him a pointed glare. "And what were you planning on wearing tonight?"

Charlie chuckled. "Fine. I wasn't planning on anything in particular, and obviously I'd have to come up with something dressier than I had thought I would."

"That's why I picked it out for you," I said. "At least have a look at it before you say no." I gave him my best imitation for an Alice-pout.

"All right, Bells. I'll go have a look." Charlie turned to walk to his bedroom across the hall. "Nice meeting you, Alice."

"Nice meeting you too, Mr. Swan."

"It's Charlie," he called from the hallway.

"He's in a good mood," I commented. It was strange to see Charlie so easy-going.

"He had a good day," Alice said in a satisfied tone.

"Alice?" I was tempted to turn my head to look at her, but she was currently holding a hot iron next to my scalp, and I didn't feel like getting burned. "What do you know that I don't?"

"Lots of things," she said calmly.

"Alice!" That wasn't what I meant, and she knew it. But the damn little vamp wasn't going to let me in on the secret, no matter how much I pleaded.

I saw Charlie walk out of his bedroom and had to cut my arguing short. "What did you think about the clothes, Dad?"

"They're great, actually. Where did you find them?"

"In the back of your closet," I answered innocently.

"I thought there are only flannel shirts and old fishing gear there." He looked confused.

"I thought so, too," I chuckled, "until I found them."

"All right, well, I'm hopping in the shower. What time to we have to leave?"

"Six thirty."

"Great. Well, have fun girls." He smiled at Alice and me.

"We will," Alice chimed.

Charlie gave us another smile and left the room.

"There's definitely something going on with him." Charlie had a certain bounce to his walk today that he didn't have the last time I had seen him. "He can't be all that happy just because we're coming over for dinner, can he?"

"Nope, that's not it."

After spending another fifteen minutes guessing, unsuccessfully I might add, I gave up. I didn't really need to know why my dad was so happy; I was just happy that he was.

Once my hair was done, Alice took out two ornate silver hair combs and used them to push some of the curls away from my face. Once that was done, we moved on to the makeup.

Considering the success she had had in choosing my clothes, I decided to trust her and kept my mouth shut. I was proven right in doing so when I was standing once again in front of the mirror. I looked…damn hot! _Even if I do say so myself._

"There's only one thing missing…" Alice turned to search for something inside my closet and came out holding a shoebox in her hands. "Here." She handed it to me.

I pulled the lid off and stared at a pair of boots with a very high heel. "Alice, I can't wear these!" I whined. "I would probably end up falling and breaking my neck!"

"Do you think I would do anything that would put you in danger?" Alice looked at me pointedly. "Edward would have my hide if I did. These are Manolo Blahnik, and they would make your legs look amazing. Edward won't know what hit him."

I didn't recognize the name of the designer, but I had no doubt that—with as exotic as it sounded—the boots were worth a small fortune.

I took out one of the boots and examined it. It was open toed with a lace-up at the front and the design on the boot itself had a pattern of flowers. There was really not that much fabric to it. It was pretty much a bunch of flowers with thick strings in between.

Once again, Alice was right. The boots did make my legs look amazing. They also gained me an extra four inches of height, which still left Edward a good six inches above me but gave me a definite confidence boost.

"Well, my work here is done." Alice smiled at me, appraising her own handiwork. "I'm a genius!"

"Yes you are, Alice," I said with a chuckle. "I'm sorry I gave you so much trouble."

"Eh, that's okay. I knew I could get you into it."

I sighed at that.

"Now, Jasper is going to knock on your door in a few moments, so I'm going downstairs. I will make sure Edward doesn't see you in my mind until you arrive." Alice smiled. "Happy birthday, Bella." She threw herself at me for a hug.

I wrapped my arms around her and laughed. "Thank you, Alice, but my birthday is tomorrow."

"I know, but I wanted to be the first to congratulate you." She grinned.

A moment later, we both heard the knock on my front door. "Jasper's here," she said and danced her way out of the room. She paused after opening the door and turned to me. "There's a new perfume on your dresser. Spray it on before you leave."

"It's just dinner, Alice, not a grand ball!"

"Exactly!" she agreed, taking me by surprise. "If it were a ball, you'd be wearing a gown," she added and disappeared down the stairs to answer the door.

I shook my head. She was right, of course. Had it been a ball, I would probably be wearing something made of shiny silk and a bloody tiara on my head. I shuddered at the mental image.

I heard the bathroom door open and Charlie's voice asking, "Who was at the door, Bells?"

"That was Jasper, Alice's boyfriend. He picked her up so that she could go and get ready," I answered from my bedroom. I glanced at the clock. It was six, already. I couldn't believe that it actually took so long to get me ready. "We only have half an hour left until we need to go, Dad."

"Yeah, I know," he answered, and I heard the door of the bathroom shut closed.

I allowed myself several more moments to admire my reflection. The curls that Alice had worked so hard to create were cascading over my shoulders, held back by the two combs that glinted in my hair. The makeup was perfect. Alice had left my eyes natural with just a touch of mascara and black eyeliner, and she painted my lips with a lipstick that was only a tone or two darker than my own natural color. The dress was hugging my shape but wasn't tight enough to make me uneasy, and the boots proved much more comfortable than I had expected them to be.

"You really look beautiful, Bella. New outfit?" Charlie's voice came from behind me, and I turned to look at him. He was smiling again.

"Yes, an early birthday present from Alice," I said, addressing only the second part of his words. "You look nice, too." He was already dressed in the outfit Alice had picked out for him. He didn't only look nice; he actually looked much younger, although it could have been the happy vibe he was sporting and not the outfit that was responsible for that.

"Thanks," Charlie said, embarrassed. He wasn't good with compliments either. "Ready to go?"

"Yes, I am. I'll meet you downstairs?"

"Sure, I'll be there in a minute, just need to put my shoes on."

Just as I was about to leave the room I remembered what Alice said about the perfume and walked over to my dresser.

 _Chanel No. 5_. _Well, at least she went for the classic._ I put a few drops of the perfume behind my ears and on the pulse points in my wrists before placing the bottle back on the dresser. I picked up my cell phone, stuffed it in the pocket of the dress, and made my way out of the bedroom.

_Time to face the music._

* * *

**I know you are all worried about Emmett. I promise you he will have his Rose eventually. Just be a little more patient.**

**I went a little overboard with Bella's outfit, I know, but I'm a girl so I'm allowed to indulge myself once in a while.**

**Thank you for reading.**

**Alley Cat.**


	29. Friends for Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Charlie**

I glanced at Bella's face as I drove to the Cullen house. She was smiling that little smile of hers; the one that I saw appear on her face for the first time less than two weeks ago. It was the first time I had seen Bella really smile since her mother...since Bella moved in with me.

It wasn't easy for either one of us. I had my grieving done years ago when Renée left and took my daughter with her, breaking my heart into pieces. But Bella was a constant little thing; she didn't handle her mother's death too well. She tried, of course, but I could see the sadness seep into her eyes when she thought I wasn't watching her. I heard her scream in her sleep, and more than once, I came to check on her and saw tears staining her cheeks. It tore me apart from the inside to know that there was nothing I could do to make things better for her.

There was a time when I thought that Jacob might be able to do that for her. He was a year younger, true, but I thought their childhood friendship might blossom into more. Billy was thinking along the same lines. _A pair of old fools, that's what we are._ Bells didn't give Jake a second look. Granted, he made her feel a little better, but I could still see that it wasn't what she needed. That's where Edward Cullen came into the frame. It was something that I would be forever grateful for – although I would never tell _him_ that—but that boy brought my Bella back. He put the smile back in her eyes and I was going to cut him some slack because of that.

"Bells, are you sure we're going the right way?" The road was dark and we were almost outside of the Forks' city limits.

"Yes, Dad. The turn to the Cullens' driveway is just a little further down this road," Bella answered.

Having my little girl happy had made my day. The guys at the station made several jokes at my expense, teasing me mercilessly, but I didn't care. I might have been slightly worried—okay so a lot more than slightly worried—when she came home with stars in her eyes on Saturday, but I couldn't ignore the change. Doom and gloom were no longer the permanent residents in our house.

Coming home after work and hearing her talking and laughing with her friend was just the icing on the cake. Bella's happy mood enticed my own. Ever since she had Angela Weber come over after her accident in January, there were no more visits of friends over at our house. I knew that Bella tried going over to her friends' once in a while, and even went to Port Angeles with them, but I could see that her heart wasn't into it. Not really.

Alice Cullen now had an honorary place in my white book. Her brother... _Well, he still needs to prove himself_. Being a male who was interested in my daughter placed him in my black book instantaneously; putting the smile back in Bella's eyes moved him out of there, but he wasn't in the clear just yet.

"The turn is about two hundred feet to your right," Bella said and pointed at the road.

I frowned. I didn't see any turn. A moment later, I saw that she was—in fact—right. The turn was so well hidden that I would have passed it without noticing if she hadn't warned me in advance.

It took five more minutes before I saw the house—it was actually more like a mansion—appear. Three stories high, with a lot of glass and a timeless feel to it, the Cullen mansion was very impressive. I didn't know the hospital paid Dr. Cullen _that_ well _._ In fact, I _knew_ it didn't, but then again, I was aware that he had come from money; I just never stopped to think from how _much_ money.

I parked the cruiser in the driveway and walked next to Bella to their front porch. I didn't have a chance to knock before the door opened, and I was met with Dr. Cullen and a woman whom I presumed to be Esme Platt standing in the doorway.

"Good evening, Charlie, Bella. Please come in," Dr. Cullen said and stepped back to allow us to come in. The interior of the house was just as impressive as its exterior, and it shared the same timeless feel.

"Good evening, Dr. Cullen," I said, shaking his hand. "Thank you for having us."

"Please, call me Carlisle. This is my fiancé, Esme Platt." He gestured at the woman standing beside him. She had the same strange golden eyes as Carlisle. In fact, a quick glance around the room told me that all of the kids shared his eyes as well. _Strange._

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Platt. Congratulations on your engagement." I offered her my hand.

"Thank you. Please, call me Esme," she said as she shook my hand. Her touch was just as cold as Carlisle's, and yet somehow very firm.

I saw that one of the teenagers went to stand next to my Bella. "I'm Edward Cullen, Chief Swan. It's a pleasure to meet you," he said.

"You too," I said and shook his hand. _Cold hands once again. What is it with this family?_

"You've met Alice, of course," Carlisle continued. "Standing next to her is Jasper, her...boyfriend." I thought I heard amusement underline his tone as he said the word 'boyfriend'. I decided to file that for later.

Jasper gave me a polite nod and remained standing next to Alice.

_There is something very protective in his stance,_ I thought. _Actually, it is the same protective note that Carlisle has next to Esme and Edward next to my Bella._

"Hi, Chief Swan, I'm Emmett." Emmett's shake was firm and a little stronger than the rest of them but just as cold.

"Why don't we move to the dining room? Dinner is ready," Esme offered. I saw an emotion cross Emmett and Jasper's faces that I didn't quite understand before their features smoothed out again.

w.W.w

The food was delicious. Esme had definitely outdone herself with dinner. _I would say that Carlisle is a lucky man, but I don't think he ate much._ That was another oddity. None of them seemed to enjoy the food at all. I could understand why tiny Alice was picking her plate, but Emmett with his large form must need more than a few bites to sustain himself. _That guy could probably eat a bear if he was hungry_.

The conversation was pleasant. I had always respected Carlisle and knew him to be a well-educated man, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that Edward was just as sharp. Emmett was a bit goofy, and it seemed like everything that passed through his mind found its way to his mouth. It was quite amusing, actually.

Alice and Jasper were amazingly intense together, but it was only when I compared their behavior to that of Bella and Edward that I began to worry. It felt as though the two of them were connected with invisible lines. If Bella moved, Edward immediately corrected his posture to mirror hers and vice versa. He made sure that she was always cared for, to the point of anticipating what she would request even before she had asked for it, triggering one of Bella's easy blushes.

After dinner, the men retired to the living room, leaving the girls to clear the table. Bella volunteered, of course, but I got the impression that it was only a show for me. It seemed natural for her to help Esme. I wondered how much of an influence this woman had had on my daughter for the short period of time that passed since she and the kids moved into Forks. I was happy that Bella had a motherly figure to turn to. I wasn't too thick to realize that there must be some subjects that Bella wouldn't feel comfortable talking to me about.

I used the opportunity to excuse myself to the bathroom. When I returned to the room, I found that Emmett and Jasper had gone to the game room, as they called it, and left Carlisle and Edward alone in the living room. It was an excellent opportunity for me to talk to the boy.

"So, Edward, tell me a little about yourself," I requested once I sat down on the couch. "How old are you?" I knew that he was going to school with Bella, but he seemed more mature than the rest of the teenagers I have met.

"I'm eighteen, sir," Edward answered, I caught an air of respect from the boy, and it wasn't just the title that he had used. "Esme is my biological aunt. When my parents died unexpectedly, she took me in. She already had Alice and Emmett—they are the only ones out of the four of us that are blood related—and we became very close. We were living in Chicago when things took another turn for the worse. Esme's husband, Charles, her sister, Anne, and her brother in-law, Henry, were all killed in a car accident this summer."

I was expecting to see sadness in Edward's face as he spoke of the death of the people who raised him, but I couldn't find any; there was only quiet acceptance. It was interesting that he and Bella had that in common, maybe this was how he knew how to help her and maybe she did the same for him.

"Henry was my older brother." Carlisle picked up from there. "He had Jasper at a very early age, before he met Anne. When they died, Esme and I decided that we didn't want the kids to be sent to foster homes and possibly be separated, so we took them in."

"That was very kind of you," I commented. Having four teenagers suddenly appear in your life couldn't be easy, but Carlisle seemed to make the adjustment very well. I could see that he really cared for every one of his kids.

"They were already my family," Carlisle stated simply and smiled.

The girls chose that time to join us in the living room.

"Would you like something to drink, Charlie?" Esme asked me.

"No, thank you." I watched her sit next to Carlisle on the loveseat. His hand came to rest on her shoulder as soon as she was seated next to him.

Bella leaned on the armrest next to Edward, and he mimicked Carlisle's gesture, putting his arm around her. _Protective again,_ I noted. Bella smiled down at him, and I saw her blushing again when he smiled right back at her. His eyes held the same sparkle as Bella's did. _The boy's got it hard._

Emmett and Jasper joined us as well, and I saw the same behavior repeat in Alice and Jasper. I glanced at Emmett briefly, wondering how he was handling having all three couples around him. He seemed his cheerful self, but I assumed that it did bother him on some level.

"Did you and Esme have a nice time, love?" Edward asked Bella quietly. I wasn't sure how I felt about the endearment he had used. It wasn't the first time he had done so—he had used it several times during dinner—but it seemed out of place for his age.

_The kid did have to grow up fast,_ I reminded myself. _Having lost his parents and later his adoptive parents as well, he couldn't have possibly remained a kid for long._

Bella smiled and nodded. "Did you and my dad have a nice time?"

"Yes, we did."

Bella looked at me for confirmation. She was apprehensive about me meeting Edward, that was obvious, but only now I saw the significance that it held for her.

"We did," I said.

"I just wanted to say that you have an amazing daughter, sir." Edward was speaking to me, but his eyes briefly went to Bella. There was determination in his gaze now. "I know that we are both young, but I love her very much and that is not going to change. I would never do anything to bring her harm or pain." As he spoke, he appeared much older than his eighteen years; his expression was fierce and uncompromising.

Suddenly, I saw myself in him. I was also eighteen when I first fell in love with Renée, and to this day, she is the only woman I had ever loved. I was just as fierce and just as uncompromising as Edward. But Bella wasn't Renée. She took after me in so many things, and it looked like the matters of the heart were no exception.

"I believe you, son," I said, but I wasn't about to leave him without a warning. "But I will be watching you." _And if you hurt her, I'll make sure your body will never be found._

Edward gave me another nod. He looked me in the eye throughout our entire conversation, sans the brief pause when Bella came to sit next to him. I respected the fact that he wasn't too intimidated by me to do so.

An unexpected ring drew everyone's attention to Alice. She took out her cell phone and glanced at the screen. "I'm sorry. I will take this outside." She gave everyone a smile, but I could see that she was worried about something. _Must be girl trouble,_ I dismissed _._

I noticed that everyone—Bella included—watched Alice as she walked out of the room. Bella bit her lip and looked down to Edward. He gave her a reassuring smile and seemed to be saying something to her, but it was too quiet for me to hear. Bella appeared to calm down so I decided to leave the matter alone.

Carlisle drew my attention then, with a work related question. He was the Chief of Medicine at the Forks Community Hospital, and as such, he had also filled the role of Medical Examiner for the police. Thankfully, we didn't require his services too often; but when we did, he was the best we could have asked for.

Alice returned a short while later. I wouldn't have even noticed her entrance, but Carlisle paused mid-sentence and turned to look at her. She gave him a tight-lipped smile that seemed too tense to be real. I also saw her looking at Edward and him giving her a very slight nod. In fact, it was so slight that had I not been so practiced at reading people, I might have missed it.

_It's as if they are having a silent conversation._

It was another odd thing to add to the growing list of things that didn't seem right about the Cullens. Bella and I had been here for several hours now, yet neither Carlisle nor Edward had ever excused themselves to use the bathroom. The others had occasionally been out of my sight, so I couldn't be sure, but I had a hunch that only Bella and I had done so. Then there was the very small portions and the fact that none of them seemed to drink even a drop from the water and juice that were on the table during dinner.

The similarities they shared, even those who were not related, were plenty. They shared the same strange eye color, the same pale skin, and the cold touch. There were all incredibly beautiful, even the men! They were also very graceful; tiny Alice alone could make a ballerina cry just by walking past her.

It just didn't add up.

I could tell that Bella didn't want to leave, but when the time grew closer to half past ten, I thought that we should take our leave. It was a school night, after all.

"Thank you for coming tonight, Charlie," Esme said in her soft voice. "It was a pleasure to get to know you."

"Thank you for inviting me, Esme." She was truly a pleasant woman to be around. She was a lot like Carlisle in terms of her inner peace and the calm atmosphere around her. "And congratulations on your engagement."

"Thank you," Carlisle said, wearing a brilliant smile.

_Yeah, he's just as smitten as his son._

Alice gave Bella a tight hug that made me smile. The girls were clearly good friends. I decided to let Bella and Edward say their goodbyes in private.

"I'm going to start the car, Bells. I'll meet you there."

"Thanks, Dad. I'll be right over." Her smile was brilliant.

_My little girl was happy._

w.W.w

**Alice**

The vision came as I was helping Esme clear the table, three vampires moving through a wooded area. I couldn't see their faces. Two broke away and moved toward the familiar hunting area to the north of Forks. The pair—a male and a female—were running toward our house while our guests were still there.

Once they caught the smell of human blood, the female, Irina, seemed to lose control and attack. There was so much blood...

"Alice, when is this going to happen?" Edward asked, flashing instantly to my side.

I was grateful that Charlie was currently in the bathroom. He was already noticing too much.

The clarity of the vision meant that this was going to happen soon.

"Less than fifteen minutes. The vision is too clear. We can't let them come here while Charlie and Bella are still in the house."

_What would cause Irina to react like that?_ I was shocked to see her attacking a human. Irina had been a vegetarian longer than Carlisle, for crying out loud!

"Show that vision to me again, slowly," Edward asked. We could both hear Charlie finishing up in the bathroom. We had to hurry. I showed Edward the images again, playing them slower in my mind. I stopped at the moment before Irina lunged toward the house. It wasn't the house she was going after; it was Charlie!

"He's her singer. Damn it!" Edward hissed. "We can't let them anywhere near the house. Do you have any idea what they might want?"

I shook my head. I knew that Edward was right; we couldn't allow them to come near the house. I checked for several different scenarios, looking for the best outcome.

_Call my cell phone two minutes after Esme, Bella, and I return to the living room. Once I leave, tell Carlisle to distract Charlie. I will leave through the back door and go meet them. Now go! Charlie is almost done._

Edward disappeared from the kitchen.

w.W.w

The distraction worked perfectly. I excused myself to take the call, and Carlisle distracted Charlie so I could make a clean getaway. I ran north, knowing that I would meet Irina and David far enough away from the city that neither would catch Charlie's scent directly. I had enough of his scent on my clothes for Irina to believe me; all I needed to know was what had prompted them to come for a visit so suddenly.

"Irina, David, wait," I called out as soon as I saw they were within earshot.

They appeared in front of me two seconds later.

"Alice, what are you doing here?" David asked. He appeared to be worried.

_Ugh, I would have loved to have Edward here with me now._

"And what is that sweet scent?" Irina asked.

"I saw you coming tonight, Irina. But you can't come closer to the house."

"Why not?" Irina sounded hurt.

"Because if you do, you'll end up attacking a human."

"What—"

"Wait," I cut her off. "Before you get angry, listen. He's your singer. His blood will be too sweet for you to ignore. Even now, just by smelling him on me, you're interested."

Irina calmed down instantly. "A singer?"

"It is a human whose blood is so potent to a certain vampire that it almost sings to him," David explained to her.

I searched my vision to see what their relationship was and was surprised to find out that they were mated. _I wonder what happened to Laurent..._ I shook myself back from my visions and returned to the current situation.

Irina sniffed the air again, and I could see her eyes darken. She swallowed hard before she spoke. "You're right. I would have attacked him."

"Is it possible that we could come back later? Once this human isn't in your house anymore?" David asked. He appeared concerned.

After making my decision, I looked at the possible outcome. There was no more blood. I saw David and Esme talking, followed by David and the guys shaking hands. "Come back tomorrow at half past five. The house will have enough time to be aired, and there won't be a problem."

"Thank you, Alice," David said softly. "And I would like to apologize for my behavior during our previous encounter."

I smiled. "I forgive you, David. But it is not I whom you should be apologizing to; it is Esme, Edward, and Emmett."

"I know, but you deserved an apology as well," he insisted.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, my beloved," Irina said, placing a hand on his cheek. "They will understand once they hear your reasons."

David looked into the eyes of his mate and gave her a weak smile. "I hope they will."

"I _know_ they will," she insisted. "Right, Alice?" Irina turned to me, her eyes pleading.

I gave her a confident smile. "I don't see any problems tomorrow. I'm sure everything will go well."

"See?" Irina turned to David. "Everything will be fine."

I saw that one of them was contemplating bringing the rest of the Denalis along. "Bring the rest of the family with you. Carlisle would love to see you all again."

Irina smiled widely.

David nodded. "We will see you tomorrow at half past five."

We exchanged phone numbers so that we could contact each other in case things changed, and then we parted ways.

I was back in the house less than thirteen minutes after I had left. I replayed the entire encounter for Edward as soon as I was within his range. I paused in the bathroom to fix my hair that looked windblown and then returned to the living room.

_Everything went well?_ I asked Edward. I hadn't checked the situation at home while I was away. I was concentrated on the meeting with Irina and David. Edward gave me a small nod, indicating that everything was well.

I sighed inwardly. Crisis averted.

w.W.w

Charlie gave Edward and Bella a few minutes to part in private, going to the police cruiser.

"Alice, is everything okay?" Bella asked, worry coloring her tone.

"Everything is fine, love," Edward assured her. "We just had a visitor about to approach the house, and we didn't want your father to see him."

I rolled my eyes mentally at him.

"I went outside to make sure the visitors don't catch the scent of you and your father," I added, working with his explanation. "That's why I left in a hurry."

"They will return tomorrow afternoon to talk to us," Edward continued. "It will allow the house to air and the scent to fade."

"But it won't be long enough for them to become suspicious that it was anything more than a onetime visit." Bella was nothing if not perceptive.

I nodded.

"Charlie is growing impatient," Edward said. "I'll pick you up tomorrow morning, and we will talk more, okay?"

Bella nodded. She gave Edward and me another hug and carefully made her way back to her father's car. Edward and I waved to them as they drove away.

"I still don't like it," Edward muttered as we walked back inside the house.

"Who were the visitors?" Carlisle asked.

"Irina and David," I answered.

"David?" Esme was surprised. "What on earth does he want?"

"More importantly, why is he with Irina?" Carlisle's forehead furrowed.

"I don't know how David found Irina, but he appears to have been living with the Denalis for the past weeks," I said. "They are mated. David wanted to come here to apologize to the three of you." I looked at Esme, Edward, and Emmett as I spoke.

Emmett huffed. Edward remained stoic. Esme seemed placated.

"What about the nomad?" Jasper asked.

"What nomad?" Emmett frowned.

"When Alice and I first met Carlisle, we found him outnumbered by three nomads who were about to kill him. We destroyed two of them, but the third had surrendered. Carlisle sent him to live with the Denalis," Jasper explained.

"I told Carlisle to send him north," I added. "I saw Irina and Laurent—the nomad—in what appeared to be a close relationship, but apparently that didn't last long." I could see bits and pieces of what David and Irina were planning on telling us tomorrow, but that didn't fill in all the blanks.

"So it will be just the two of them?" Emmett asked. He had been curious about the Denalis since the moment we told him about the three blonde beautiful sisters who were single-handedly responsible for the myth of the succubus.

"No, they are bringing the entire family," I answered with a smile. "Eleazar and Carmen are going to be very happy for you Carlisle," I told him. I could see him glancing at Edward and getting a small headshake in return.

Being on the outside of the silent conversation wasn't as fun as being on the inside, I thought.

"As far as I can see, it should be a pleasant chat," I said. I couldn't help the desire to tease Emmett so I added. "Emmett, you might find that Kate and Tanya would enjoy your company very much." I knew my words had a double meaning and that Emmett would take it in the wrong way.

Emmett wiggled his eyebrows, and we all laughed.

"Well, I think we should first take care of airing the house, and then we can retire to our own matters," Esme suggested.

The task of opening all the windows in the house was done in less than a minute. The house was only three stories high, and there were six of us moving at vampire speed, after all.

I kept a part of my mind carefully attuned to any decisions that might affect the outcome of tomorrow night. Although everything I was getting pointed toward a positive outcome, I couldn't help the ominous feeling I had regarding the next twenty-four hours. I noticed Edward kept glancing at me every once in a while with a worried expression.

_What is it?_

"I think you should watch Laurent's decisions as well," Edward said. "I think there's something here that we're missing, and I don't like it."

"Do you think he would come here as well?" Jasper asked us both.

I checked but all I saw was Laurent hunting in the snowy area of Denali and Alaska. "He didn't make any decisions in that regard." I wished I could offer more than that.

Jasper wrapped his arm around my waist and placed a kiss on the top of my head. "You are doing your best, darlin'. Please, stop chastising yourself."

I leaned into him. He knew me so well.

"I trust you, Alice," Edward added. "I know you are doing your best. If Laurent causes any trouble, we can handle him.""Damn right, we can!" Emmett added from the other side of the house.

"Fine. I'll keep an eye on him and try not to worry too much," I said.

I saw Jasper's idea as he formed it in his mind and felt a slow smile spread on my lips. I liked what I was seeing. I heard Edward's chuckle behind us as Jasper and I made a quick getaway from the house. Jasper was a very gifted vampire, especially when he decided to use all of his gifts to bring us both immense amounts of pleasure.

w.W.w

**David**

Irina and I hunted on the way back to Alaska. We didn't catch anything interesting, but I didn't mind that too much. I felt much better having Alice's forgiveness and her reassurance that everything would be all right. I had been worried about this for weeks. I trusted Elena, so I followed her instructions to Denali, and in all honesty, I didn't regret that for a second. That was what had brought me to meet Irina.

Our first meeting might not have been the most conventional, what with me standing half-naked in the sun and her running into me mid-hunt. I was embarrassed at my lack of attention that allowed me to let myself get caught with my pants down—or very close to that. Preparing myself to face a fight to the death at the worst, or a very unpleasant confrontation at the best, I was caught completely by surprise when this tall blonde had appeared from between the trees.

Irina was chasing prey that had run in the direction of the lake, but as soon as she caught my scent, her trajectory changed. She was determined to defend her territory from the trespassing nomad by any means necessary.

That's how we found ourselves relying on our baser instincts when we met each other. Our beasts were out to play, but it wasn't an opponent on the other side; it was a mate and an ally. The recognition was instant. Vampire mating was instinctual, I knew that, but I had imagined Elena to be my mate and having lost her—experiencing the lasting pain resulting from that loss—I hadn't expected to be proven wrong, especially not as fast as it happened.

_I was so caught up in my thoughts that I did not even hear the approaching danger until it was too late. I only had enough time to leap out of the lake and into my pants before the vampire appeared in front of me._

_I dropped in a defensive crouch at the same time as my eyes took in the beauty before me. Pale blonde curls framing an oval shaped-face, delicate features, dark golden eyes, and lips that were pink and plump._

_She growled at me, and I felt myself react in a manner I had never expected to. I became hard. I straightened from my crouch and made a step toward her. I wasn't thinking; my instincts took over._

_I took in the rest of her appearance as I stepped closer. The warning growl had stopped; she appeared to be studying me as well. She was tall and lean, almost as tall as I was. She wore a thin blouse that was windblown and showed her breasts to be of the most perfect size._

_Desire shot through my body. The moment we came close enough, she threw herself at me. Instead of perceiving this to be a threat, as I should have and probably would have had it been anyone else, I welcomed her and caught her in a hungry kiss._

We didn't part until we were naked, satisfied, and purring like a pair of cats who had just had a feast on the king's table. It was only then that I had finally came about to ask her for her name. We had both laughed, realizing how absurd it was, and yet we both understood.

" _I'm Irina," she said in a soft, husky voice. "What's yours?" There were still traces of laughter in her eyes, and I found myself admiring them so much that I had nearly missed her question._

" _David."_

" _Nice to meet you, David," she said formally._

" _The pleasure is all mine," I answered, and we both burst into another round of laughter._

_The chuckles had turned her face even more beautiful but had also made her breasts bounce in the most enticing way._

It had taken us almost three days to return back to her house and meet the rest of her family. Her sisters teased her, as sisters should, and her parental figures—Carmen and Eleazar—greeted me into the family like a lost son.

Later, I had asked Eleazar, who had a couple of centuries of experience on me, if he had heard of such a quick mating before. He said that it was actually more common that I had thought it to be. Since mating was instinctual for us, the reaction had been just like with a hunt—instantaneous and overwhelming. Eleazar said that vegetarian vampires were actually slower to mate, since choosing a more civilized way of life meant that we spent less time giving in to our instincts. Irina and I had met when we were both in a feral state of mind, thus resulting in a feral reaction.

Irina's sisters, Kate and Tanya, became like my own sisters, and although they had more than six or seven centuries over me in vampire age, I was older in human years and thus teased them to be my little sisters. Carmen and Eleazar had acted as parental figures to the girls but were close enough to my age for me to see them as siblings as well, although I had respected them both and acknowledged Eleazar as the patriarch. It had been a nice change, actually, to forfeit the role of the leader and simply enjoy life.

There was only one thing that marred my joy. My behavior toward my previous family.

I told my new family everything, including the details about Elena. At first, they were appalled that I had treated people whom I saw as family in such a deplorable way, but they understood once I told them about Elena.

She didn't make another appearance since she sent me to Denali. I was not concerned about not hearing her again, not anymore, but I did want to go back and apologize. I waited several weeks, hoping that Elena might give me an indication of when I should go, when Irina had finally convinced me that I was acting foolishly. I did not need to rely on the words of a woman who had been dead for more than three and a half centuries. Since we were already out on a hunting trip that had taken us close to the border, Irina had offered that we use the opportunity to stop by for a visit.

I was concerned when Alice approached us mid-way, fearing that they might still be angry to the point of not wanting to see me. But I was pleased to see that it was nothing like that. In fact, it had gone much better than I had anticipated, and I was looking forward to telling Tanya, Kate, Carmen, and Eleazar about it.

The only one I was not the least bit eager to see was Laurent. So, of course, naturally, he had bumped into us on our way back, just a few miles from the house. Irina and he exchanged angry glares while I offered him a curt nod.

"Good hunting?" Laurent asked conversationally. He was obviously too thick to realize that neither one of us was interested in having one with him.

"Yes, it was," I said and turned to leave.

"Going back to the house?"

I gritted my teeth. There was something about that guy that was just getting on my nerves. It was probably the knowledge that he and Irina had a fling not too long ago. "Maybe."

"What's it to you?" Irina spat.

Their break up was not a nice one. Irina had not only caught him feeding on a human, but she had caught him doing so while he was still inside her. She might have forgiven him the slip, since he had been feeding the "traditional" way for a long time, but she had no tolerance for him cheating on her.

I thought that Carmen was too compassionate for her own good when she had allowed Laurent to remain on their property and live in a cabin several miles away from the main house. But I had no say in the matter, since it happened before I arrived in Denali. Therefore, I kept my thoughts to myself.

Kate and Tanya had no more love for him than Irina, but they respected their parents and ignored Laurent's existence completely. I took a similar approach, ignoring him whenever I could and acted cold and on the verge of rude when I had to acknowledge him.

"Nothing." Laurent shrugged.

"Good. Keep it that way," I said curtly and turned to leave with Irina.

I felt his stare following us for a while before we disappeared from his sight. I did not like the way he was looking at my mate, and it had nothing to do with their past. I had an odd tingling in the back of my head telling me that Laurent, although he appeared timid and weak, was nothing short of a brilliant manipulator who could not be trusted.

w.W.w

**Laurent**

I watched Irina and David make their way back in the direction of their house.

I was furious. I knew that I shouldn't let myself be ruled by my emotions, but they were getting on my nerves. _That stupid arrogant prick treats me like a dog; the bitch sticks her nose high up in the air, forgetting that I fucked her until she screamed like the whore that she is not more than a month ago._

I wanted to make them both suffer. I wanted to tear them limb from limb and burn the pieces, leaving the heads for last so they could watch.

I took several deep breaths to calm myself. James was an emotional idiot. He let his anger dictate his actions and laughed at me for over-thinking things. _Well, James, look who's laughing now._

I would have my revenge against the bitch and her prick. In fact, I had a score to settle with their entire coven. Tanya and Kate would suffer too. They were no better than their sister. Hell, all three were worthless whores who thought too highly of themselves.

I didn't care about Carmen, but Eleazar was a male and their leader, so he had to go as well.

Lastly, the three vampires who were responsible for the deaths of James and Victoria had to pay, too. I might not have liked James all that much, but no one took away my coven and walked away unpunished. I had a reputation to maintain.

I had been patient. I bided my time and made my plans, searching for their weaknesses. I had all the time in the world, and while their diet had been nothing short of disgusting, I stuck to it—for the most part—for the sake of pretense.

My façade worked...for the most part. The unfortunate incident that had led to Irina throwing me away like yesterday's newspaper was only a minor bump in the road. In fact, when I thought about it, the incident had actually proved to result in my favor. I could go about more freely once I wasn't living too close to the coven, and I no longer had to play the part of poor, harmless Laurent who was looking to repent for his sins. What a load of crap.

Honestly, I still couldn't believe how stupid they all were to fall for that act. I couldn't have been that good of an actor. The diet must have messed with their brain. How could they stand that shit, anyway? Animal blood tasted like shit—not that I had any firsthand knowledge of what shit tasted like, but I imagined that it was about as palatable to humans as animal blood was to me.

Eventually, being thrown out had definitely proved to be a good outcome. I didn't have to pretend as much, and I could cheat on my diet more often. I did make sure, whenever I crossed paths with any of them, to appear weak and remorseful. I wanted them unsuspecting and off guard. The element of surprise was too valuable, and I was patient enough to maintain my act for a little longer.

Back in my cabin, I contemplated what I had learned today. Irina and David were quite chatty on their way back from the States and had unknowingly provided me with a great amount of information. I had just finished hunting and decided to sit on a high tree and watch the surrounding forest. They were unaware of my presence for a long while, but when the wind changed direction, I was forced to expose myself else they would have known I was listening to their entire conversation.

_I learned a great deal tonight,_ I thought as I pondered over several different plans in my mind. I was careful to dedicate a part of my thoughts to planning several hunting trips at the same time while I was making my plans and trying not to decide on anything too important.

I could not know for certain whether my decisions were being watched or not, but I wasn't about to take the chance that they were. _Always assume the worst, and reality will not have a chance to disappoint you._

* * *

**Did anyone expected to find David with Irina? I know from the reviews that most of you were expecting it to be Tanya. Are you disappointed?**

**What do you think about Laurent?**

**Thank you for reading.**

**Alley Cat.**


	30. Surprise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I didn't always hate my birthdays. I used to like them, actually. When I was little, my mother and I would celebrate my birthday together, just the two of us. We used to bake a cake together—messing up the entire kitchen in the process—and Mom would always have something special for me. A teacher's salary left very little money for presents—actually, it left none at all—but Mom always managed to get me something, no matter how small, just to show me that she remembered.

Charlie was never good with presents, so he would always coordinate with my mom and either send something to accompany her present or simply participate in hers. I still had the small jewelry box that Charlie had sent me for my tenth birthday to match my mother's gift—a delicate silver bracelet. The bracelet was long gone, but the box remained with me. It wasn't fancy, but I liked it for its simplicity. It was black with a Japanese orchid printed on the lid. The inside was also black and had a removable tray, so that I could keep larger items at the bottom and smaller items in the different slots of the tray.

As I got older, our traditions suddenly changed. My mother began dating Phil, a minor league baseball player. Phil came from money and earned well at what he did. He wasn't rich by normal standards, but compared to my mother, he was. She began taking me to a restaurant with him on my birthday. My mom would notify in advance that I had a birthday, and the waiter would bring a cake with a lit candle and draw everyone's attention to me. I didn't like attention. No one who was as clumsy as I was wanted to have a spotlight pointed at them, believe me.

I tried talking my mother out of doing so, but she insisted that I deserved to have my birthday celebrated. I groaned and eventually gave up trying. I took comfort in the fact that she wasn't throwing me huge parties. I should have bitten my tongue for thinking that because after marrying Phil, my mother did just that—threw me a huge party. She invited a ton of people—most of whom I didn't really know—had a huge buffet set up, and arranged for a DJ.

It turned out disastrous.

I tripped while walking past the buffet and managed to have a bowl full of fruit punch spill all over my dress—yes, Mom made me put on a dress. As I was coming back to the living room, I accidently pulled a wire, and the DJ stand lost power. All eyes were immediately drawn to me, and I could see and hear people laughing at me. I ran away from the room, barely making it to my bedroom before the tears spilled from my eyes. Phil managed to persuade me to come back out eventually, only for me to slip on a wet spot on the floor and hit my head so hard that I ended up in the local ER with a mild concussion.

_Worst birthday ever._

But what made things even worse was the fact that it was also the last birthday I got to celebrate with my mother. She didn't live to see me turn seventeen.

I didn't want to celebrate it. Charlie understood—he wasn't one for attention either—and so we spent that evening at home, eating a dinner that I had cooked, and Charlie added a little money to my collage fund. My mother had no family other than Phil and myself. With Phil gone, I was entitled to the money from her life insurance. I didn't want to touch the money at all, but Charlie made a valid point when he said that Mom would have wanted me to use the money for my education—so I started a college fund. Since I didn't like attention and I really didn't want Charlie spending money on me anymore than was necessary, every holiday, instead of buying me presents, he would contribute to the fund.

This year, however, Charlie wanted the two of us to go to a restaurant and celebrate. He promised that it wasn't anything fancy, but he really wanted my eighteenth birthday to be just a little more special. After all, I was officially going to be an adult.

After last night's events, I was happy to know that I had plans for the afternoon. Edward and Alice would be taking care of some visitors of their own, and I wouldn't be able to see them. Charlie made the reservations for the relatively early hour of six because he had to work the night shift and said that he would be home early again to pick me up.

Edward arrived to take me to school as usual, but I could see that he was feeling stressed over something. I assumed that it was due to the unexpected company that he would have in the evening and decided not to bother him.

He did wish me a happy birthday a little too loudly when we exited the car, but I was glad that there wasn't a birthday present in the form of a new car parked in my driveway this morning, so I decided to ignore it. Fortunately, the parking lot was mostly empty, and no one appeared to have heard him. The only ones who knew about my birthday were Edward and the rest of the Cullens, so I was spared any excess attention during school.

During lunch, I noticed that Alice was a lot more excited than usual, and I felt the dread rising within me. "Alice, please tell me that you didn't get me a whole wardrobe of designer clothes."

Alice's spirits sank immediately, and she pouted at me.

"Alice! You promised!" I whined, probably a bit too loud.

"I didn't!" she insisted.

"Yes you did! I said—"

"You said," she cut me off, "that I am not allowed to buy you _foreign designer_ clothes. You said nothing about a new wardrobe."

_Stupid vampires with photographic memories_ , I thought as I realized that she was, in fact, right; I never said anything about a new wardrobe. _I really should have been more specific_.

"And I stuck to my promise. All of the clothes are from local designers. But let me tell you; it was a _headache_ to follow that restriction.

"You can't get a headache, Alice," I grumbled.

"Well, you know what I mean," she said in dismissal.

I huffed.

"Oh, stop it! You're going to _love_ your new wardrobe," Alice said. I looked at her with a doubtful expression, and she gave me a pointed glare. "Trust me, I _know_."

I rolled my eyes at that. _Stupid psychic vampire_. I decided that I would argue about every single item just to irritate her.

"Don't even _think_ about it!" Alice glared at me.

_Damn! That little minx sure can be scary when she wants to…_

Edward chuckled and squeezed me lightly with the arm he held over my shoulders. "Don't worry, Bella. Alice didn't go too overboard...just a little."

"Somehow, I don't find that very comforting," I said but leaned my head on his shoulder, nonetheless. I wasn't big on public displays of affection but thought it innocent enough to be able to do that during lunch. "I assume that you chose an outfit for me for tonight's dinner with Charlie too, right?" I asked, knowing that she probably already had the outfit stored in my closet.

"Yup." Alice smiled. "I even decided to let you go with ballet flats this time." She said it as though it was a huge compromise on her part. Actually, come to think of it, it probably was.

"Thanks, Alice." I was being sarcastic, but she didn't seem to notice as she sent another pleased smile at me.

Lunch was soon over, and Edward walked with me to Biology. People were still staring at us as we walked. Even after seeing the same thing for almost two weeks, the student body of Forks High still found our relationship a favorite topic of gossip.

"You know," I said as Edward as I took our seats, "I think Alice would have liked to dress me up every single day if I were to let her."

Edward chuckled. "She says that she will, eventually."

I groaned. "Do you think you can remind Alice that I'm not a dress-up Barbie doll?" There wasn't much anger behind my words. I knew that Alice did what she did because she honestly wanted me to look better. The only problem I had was that her idea of better didn't always coincide with _my_ idea of better. I saw no reason to spend thousands of dollars on clothes or accessories only because they had a certain person's name on them.

Mr. Banner chose that moment to call the attention of the class and start the lesson, so I had to abandon the Alice-and-clothes issue. It was hard to concentrate with Edward sitting so close to me, especially when he was constantly touching me. Usually he kept one hand on my thigh or knee, but sometimes he would move his fingers and start drawing random patterns that caused my heart rate to skyrocket, and the only biology that was on my mind then was of the physical kind.

Gym was torturous as usual. At least I didn't fall as much. Having my entire vampire family with me in gym sure did have its advantages. At least one of them was almost always within catching distance if I stumbled.

Lauren kept her distance throughout the day, and gym was no exception. I still felt bad for the pranks, but they seemed to have served their original purpose.

Finally, classes were over, and I made my way out of the gym to go meet Edward—who was waiting outside of the locker rooms. He held me tightly around my waist and pressed a chaste kiss on my lips. It was short and soft, but it served to stir the butterflies in my stomach in the same manner as his touches during Biology.

Alice and Jasper fell into step with us as we walked to the cars in the parking lot. There was an air of expectation hanging heavy around us when we reached Edward's Audi and Emmett's jeep. I became concerned. During lunch, everyone said that there was nothing for me to worry about; their guests were a coven that was also vegetarian, and they were old friends of Carlisle. But I couldn't shake away the feeling that there _was_ something to worry about.

"Bella, there really is no need for you to stress yourself, darlin'," Jasper assured me, sending a wave of serenity in my way.

"I know, but I can't help it. I have a bad feeling about this."

Edward held me tighter, comforting me with his touch. "Don't worry about us, love. They do not come to harm us; Alice would have seen if they were."

"I know…" But I also knew that Alice's visions were subject to change. All it took was one small change of mind, and the future could have a _very_ different outcome. Also, I caught more than one silent exchange between Alice and Edward, one of which resulted in a slight frown on both of their faces—which didn't help my nerves at all.

w.W.w

Edward parked in the driveway of my house and walked me inside. I was glad for the opportunity to spend some time alone with him. I might not have liked attention and expensive presents for my birthday, but it still was my birthday and having some "alone time" with my boyfriend was something I definitely wanted.

I prepared a sandwich for myself for lunch and sat down in the kitchen. We spent several moments in silence as Edward watched me eat. Once I was done, I washed the dishes and left them to dry on the kitchen towel. I turned to look at Edward who was still sitting there, watching me.

"Is it that interesting to watch me eating and doing dishes?" I asked as I sat back down next to him.

"I love the sight of you, no matter what you're doing." He smiled innocently.

I felt myself blush. I was never good with compliments.

"And I also enjoy seeing you blush." His words added more heat to my cheeks.

"But isn't it harder for you when I blush?"

"I just don't focus on the burn in my throat." He shrugged. "I like what the blush does to your face, and the way your eyes get a certain sparkle to them. I put the thirst in the back of my mind."

"You make it sound almost...easy."

"It's not. It's a constant battle that I must fight," he said. "It's a battle between the desire to sink my teeth into your neck," his cold fingers trailed lightly over my neck, "and taste your blood, feel it flowing down my throat..."

His eyes held me captivated, dazzled as he spoke. His words should have caused me to feel afraid, but instead, the warm sound of his voice, the silkiness of his touch, had quite the opposite reaction.

"And the desire to kiss you, taste the sweetness of your mouth," his thumb lingered over my bottom lip, causing my breath to hitch, "to feel the warmth of your body around mine." He leaned closer to me, his breath fanning over my face, drowning me in his scent. "I may be a vampire, my Bella, but I am also a man. Both the vampire and the man desire you, Bella." His lips curved into a small smile that I loved so much, and he leaned even closer, leaving almost no space between our lips. "Every…" His lips touched mine for a short kiss. "Single." Kiss. "Part." Kiss. "Of you." And then, just when I was certain that I would go mad if he didn't kiss me properly, his lips captured mine for a deep, passionate kiss.

I held his head between my hands, pressing my body as close to his as I could as we kissed. His mouth did amazing things to me as he kissed me, nibbled on my bottom lip, and suckled on my tongue. I moaned and felt him lifting me into his lap. I could feel the effect I was having on him with ease.

It was a sweet torture, kissing him so deeply, holding him so close, but it wasn't enough. I wanted more. Having had a taste of the things he could do to me in the meadow, I was eager for another dose.

His hands held me close, pressing my body on his. I heard him groan into my mouth and smiled against his lips. I was suddenly filled with satisfaction. _I_ did this to him. _I_ had that kind of effect on him.

"I love you, my Bella," he whispered.

"I love you, my Edward," I whispered back, breathless. I was hot and full of desire. He ignited a fire deep in the pit of my stomach, and I knew that he was the only one who could turn that burning desire into the best form of pleasure. But then, suddenly, he stopped. He stilled his lips, and his hands no longer moved over my back.

I pulled back to look at him.

His eyes were onyx black, and his lips were curved in a devilish smile. "You are the most dangerous creature I have ever met, Isabella Swan."

I blinked, trying to clear my mind from the fog of the passion in order to understand what he was talking about.

"One touch, and you make me forget everything around me." He was still smiling.

"Why did you stop?" I asked, breathless. "Did I do something...wrong?" I felt my entire mood sink, my spirits plummeted.

"No!" he almost shouted, his eyes widening in alarm. "On the contrary," his devilish smile was back, "you did something very, very _right_." He emphasized his words with a light press of my body on his.

"Oh." I could think of nothing else to say. I could feel him beneath me and knew that I must be blushing so fiercely that my face resembled a tomato.

"There is nothing more I would like to do than to continue what we've started, but Charlie should be back soon," Edward said as he gently eased me off his lap and into my own chair. "When I make love to you, I want to have plenty of time to savor every inch of your body." His eyes were still black and hungry. His words did little to help me relax. "But neither of us is ready for that step just yet."

The prospect of making love to him was both intimidating and amazingly desirable, but he was right, as always. I wasn't ready to take that step just yet. I didn't doubt that I would want to, hell, I was halfway there not five minutes ago, but now I realized that I wasn't ready yet.

"Can I give you your birthday present now?" he asked after several moments of silence.

I looked up at him.

"It's not a new car, I promise." He grinned.

I rolled my eyes. "Don't pretend that you're not capable of doing just that."

"Oh, I don't. I'm fully aware that we both know I'm capable of that and more." He was still grinning. "But I thought I should start small."

Edward pulled out a small box from his pocket and handed it to me.

I took the gift with trepidation. He did say he was starting small, but I knew that we had very different definitions of the concept.

"Open it. It won't bite." He chuckled.

I tore the silver wrapping paper carefully; the last thing either one of us needed was for me to give myself a paper cut—which I was perfectly capable of doing being the klutz that I was. My fingers shook a little when I opened the black jewelry box that was beneath the wrapping paper. Inside, on a pale-blue lining, rested a crystal heart pendant on a silver necklace.

"It was my mother's," Edward whispered as my fingers gently caressed the heart. "I was able to keep very few items from my human life, but my mother's jewelries were among them. I thought it was a good representation." I lifted my gaze to see him smiling gently, his eyes filled with emotions. "It's hard and cold, and it throws rainbows in the sunlight."

I felt my eyes fill with tears as I listened to his words. "You forgot the most important similarity," I murmured. "It's beautiful."

Edward smirked but didn't argue. "My heart is just as silent," he mused. "And it, too, is yours."

He helped me put the necklace on, and I saw how much it meant to him to know that I accepted his gift without argument. "Thank you, for both," I whispered.

w.W.w

Edward left a short while later, promising to drop by once I return from dinner with Charlie. I went upstairs to get ready.

Alice had indeed chosen an outfit for me to wear. I found a garment bag hanging in my closet—one that I was sure hadn't been there in the morning—with a note pinned to the top, stating simply, "Wear me!" I chuckled as I opened the bag and found that it contained not only the outfit—a pair of very soft white pants, a cashmere sweater, and a long sleeved cardigan—but also a matching white set of lingerie from La Perla and the promised pair of ballet flats.

The shoes were completely impractical, being very delicate and white, and I would never have bought on my own, but I reminded myself that they could have been a pair of five-inch heels rather than flats and decided not to mention it to Alice.

Charlie arrived just as I was finishing with the shower. I took my time drying my hair. I knew that we weren't going to be outside for long, just the time that it would take to walk from the parking lot to the restaurant, but I didn't feel like taking the risk of catching a cold. With my luck, even that short period of time would be enough.

When my hair was dry, I pulled it into a low ponytail and got dressed. The lingerie didn't include a garter belt this time, for which I was grateful, but I still felt almost sinful wearing it. The cardigan was long—it reached the middle of my thighs—and knit in a pattern that left more holes than fabric, but it was surprisingly warm.

Charlie knocked on my bedroom door just as I was about to put my shoes on. "Hey, Bells. Are you ready?"

"Almost, Dad, just putting my shoes on," I answered with a smile.

"Okay. I'll meet you downstairs."

"Sure."

Charlie left, and I heard him going down the stairs as I put on the ballet flats. I took a moment to look at myself in the mirror and thought that I resembled a snowman, or rather a snow- _woman_. I was dressed completely in white, and my hair was almost black in contrast. _All I need is a carrot for a nose, and I'm all set_. I chuckled.

A noise coming from the kitchen caught my attention. I frowned. It almost sounded like Charlie used the back door to go outside. _Why would Charlie use the back door? Why not use the front?_

I was dressed and ready to go. On my way out of my bedroom, I managed to hit the corner of my desk and knock down several books.

"Classic Bella…," I said and bent over to pick up the books and put them back on my desk.

I heard voices coming from downstairs and stopped to listen. I couldn't hear the exact words, but I got the impression that Charlie was talking to someone.

_It could be the phone_ , I thought, but the same uneasy feeling that I had all day was growing stronger.

I walked out of my bedroom to the top of the stairs. "Dad? Is everything okay? Who are you talking to?" I started to descend the stairs.

The sound of a gunshot made me freeze in my place. My heart, which was already racing, sped up even more, and I could hear it beating so loudly that I was sure anyone within the house could hear me.

I heard a muffled scream that sounded very much like my dad's, and that was enough to unfreeze me. I ran the remaining stairs, stumbling once but catching myself on the rail. When I reached the bottom and turned to look into the kitchen, I felt my heart skip a beat and the color leaving my face.

"No!" I screamed.

w.W.w

**Jasper**

The tension that had filled the house just before the Denalis arrived was almost unbearable. It made me even more on edge than usual. On the reasonable level, I knew that they weren't a threat, nor were they coming to harm my mate, but it was hard on the emotional level to stay calm.

I sat with Alice in my lap as we made the introductions. I could feel that David was nervous. Irina shared his tension, and I felt her thirst rise as Charlie's scent registered with her. Carmen and Eleazar were mostly calm, with only a trace of apprehension that disappeared after several minutes of making conversation with Carlisle and Esme. Kate and Emmett were shamelessly flirting, no surprise there. Edward was tense and miserable and slightly...frustrated?

I turned my head to look at him to see what was making him feel that way and saw that Tanya was making a move on him. The levels of lust that she was sending toward him were higher than the ones I could feel coming from Kate and Emmett.

I sent him a light wave of amusement and received a glare in return. I turned away from him and Tanya and hid my hushed chuckled in Alice's hair. She leaned into me a little but continued to talk to Irina.

As the time passed, the atmosphere began to calm down. Esme and Carmen retired to the gardens. Eleazar and Carlisle made an escape to Carlisle's study. Irina, Kate, and Tanya followed Alice upstairs. The girls seemed to share a love for fashion, and Alice mentioned something about showing them her closet—which was actually bigger than our bedroom.

Emmett and I went to the game room. He challenged me to a round of zombie shooting, and I was happy to oblige. David and Edward left the house for a short walk. I assumed that David wanted to speak with each member of his previous family in private.

About ten minutes into our game, David came in and asked if he could speak to Emmett. Emmett, who was losing, was happy to let Edward take his place.

_How did it go?_ I asked Edward once we were left alone.

"It went okay. I knew most of the story beforehand. I told him it wasn't me he had to apologize to; it was Emmett and Esme. They were with him longer than I was."

_So why are you nervous like a turkey on Thanksgiving?_

Edward shrugged. "Just a feeling."

_Want me to help?_

He shook his head but didn't speak. I assumed that he had heard the company coming. While I wasn't able to hear her thoughts, Tanya's emotions gave her away just as easily when she approached the room.

"Hello, boys, what are you to up to?" she asked.

I didn't like the tone she had used, or the lust that she was emanating. I guessed her thoughts were just as unpleasant because Edward's emotions expressed disgust, impatience, and wariness.

Before their arrival, Edward had told us what he knew about David's past, so we decided that it would be for the best to keep the fact that Edward's mate was human to ourselves. I could see that Edward wished he had come up with some kind of a lie because Tanya was making her move on him. I knew Emmett would have a lot of fun teasing Edward once he heard about this.

I noticed Edward rolling his eyes and wondered if it was in response to my thoughts or to Tanya's. A pointed glare in my direction answered that question.

"So, I heard that you spent several years as a Volturi guard, Eddie." Tanya's voice—way too sweet in my opinion—was as annoying as the lust and determination oozing out of her. That was one of the downsides to my gift. I was affected by the surrounding emotions no matter who was emitting them, and the levels of lust were affecting my body in ways that were definitely not appropriate for present company.

It helped that Edward's disgust and discomfort were rising as well. Tanya's use of that nickname definitely didn't earn her any points in his book.

"What's it to you?" he asked.

I was surprised by the rudeness of his response. Edward usually treated females with outmost respect. Tanya's thoughts must have been pretty bad.

Edward frowned slightly, and I noticed he was rolling his eyes again.

_That bad, huh?_ I chuckled mentally.

Edward nodded slightly, but his emotions gave him away—it was really bad.

"Well, I was wondering if it is true what they say about Volterra," Tanya said.

_Is she really that thick?_

A window popped up in the middle of our screen with the writing, "You have no idea…," before it was closed. I noticed that Tanya's attention was focused on Edward's face, so he couldn't use the same method as earlier to answer me.

"I'm probably going to be sorry I asked, but fine, what do they say about Volterra?" Edward turned away from Tanya, and we continued to slaughter zombies on the screen—or was it monsters?

I noticed that Tanya was slowly drifting closer to Edward on the sofa, which in turn made him lean away from her and closer to me. _Aggressive much?_

The same window popped up on the screen with the same writing, and this time I could hardly hide my chuckle. _Poor Edward._

"They say…" Tanya leaned even closer to Edward and lowered her voice as though telling a secret. "That they have the most amazing...parties."

I had a hunch that she didn't use the word "parties" in her mind because Edward's irritation spiked when she paused. I wondered if Tanya even remembered that I was in the room.

_Maybe she decided that I was invisible…_

"There are many rumors about the life in Volterra, some true some not so. I would recommend that you do not believe everything you hear," Edward replied.

It wasn't really an answer; he was avoiding the subject. I knew why. Edward was never fond of talking about the time he had spent with the Volturi, not that I blame him. I also had a past that I didn't like discussing.

I did have to give it to him. I could feel how irritated he was—hell, he was downright pissed—but he didn't show his emotions. His face was blank, and his voice was flat. This alone should have told Tanya that the subject should be avoided, but she seemed oblivious.

_One would have thought that after several centuries of dealing with men, she would have learned how to read their faces. Some succubus she is._

There was a trace of amusement in Edward's emotions, and I assumed that it was due to my thoughts because the next thing that came out of Tanya's mouth had him fuming again.

"If that's what you say, it means that you really didn't see everything Volterra has to offer." Her voice dropped to a husky whisper, which I assumed she thought to be sexy, but I found that it was far from it. "I wouldn't mind showing you…"

Edward was on his edge; I could feel it. His emotions were so elevated that I had a hard time controlling my gift and not projecting everything he felt to every occupant of the house.

"Tanya, I can hear your thoughts," Edward said through gritted teeth. "Trust me. There is nothing you can teach me and plenty that you still have to learn. I don't feel like playing teacher, so why don't you run along and find someone else to harass."

_Ouch._

I could see Tanya pouting from the corner of my eye. It made her look even more ridiculous than her actions.

"There's no need to be mean, Eddie."

Edward growled. "Don't call me Eddie."

Tanya, apparently, was really thick. "But—"

"No, Tanya," Edward cut her off. "I don't want to hear anymore. Please, leave us be."

I was so preoccupied with the emotional climate within the room that when I felt a sharp spike of terror, horror, and pain, my first thought was that Edward had finally snapped and hit Tanya. My second thought was that there was something wrong with Alice. The emotions I felt came from both inside this room and the floor above us, where Alice was talking to Kate and Irina.

"No!" I heard Alice scream.

Edward and I were out of the room within an instant. I flew upstairs but Edward went in the opposite direction—he was out of the front door before I even made it past the third step. I didn't have time to even think about questioning his motives. My mate was distressed; she was my top priority.

"Alice? What's wrong?" I asked as soon as I saw her.

Alice was on her knees, her eyes glazed over, and her emotions nearly brought me to my knees. Terror, fear, horror, pain, and guilt were swirling so high within her that it triggered my every instinct to protect my mate. I crouched defensively in front of her as the rest of the vampires flew into the room.

"Alice, honey, what's wrong?" Esme asked in a soft voice, trying to keep it calm, although I could feel how worried she was.

That was all it took me to understand that whatever danger there was that caused my mate to feel the way she was feeling, it wasn't coming from this room. I straightened from my crouch.

Alice looked up at me, her eyes reflecting deep pain, fear, and tremendous guilt.

"I didn't see it. It was a sudden decision...I didn't see it," she mumbled.

I wrapped her in my arms, kneeling beside her. "Alice, darlin', what did you see? Are we in danger?"

Alice shook her head, and then it clicked—Edward's speedy departure, Alice's pain—the danger wasn't for us, it was for…

"Bella," Alice breathed.

* * *

**The name for this chapter is taken from the episode "Surprise" from the second season of Buffy.**

**Recognizable quotes are from "Eclipse", page 389, paperback edition.**

**Thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	31. Loss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Laurent**

I kept my mind focused on the forest around me and on the path beneath my feet. I saw the Denalis leave and head toward Forks and decided to keep my distance. I made dozens of different decisions with each step I made. If that didn't stop the bloody seer from catching on to me, I knew nothing could. I had made several different plans, but I decided on none when I left the cabin this morning. I did everything I could to make it seem as though I wasn't even aware of the Denalis.

As I ran, I came across several different animals, some predators as well, but nothing smelled even remotely appetizing. _Focus,_ I told myself. If I wanted to be able to take everyone by surprise and have my revenge, then I would need to be fully focused so that I would make as few mistakes as possible. I was going against a very large number of vampires—twelve in total—and if I wanted to make it out of the ordeal alive, I needed to be prepared and on my toes.

I turned toward the border while making a decision to head toward Canada. It wasn't hard to do one thing and decided on another, not for the highly developed vampire brain, but it did require a lot of concentration. Vampires, as a general rule, were easily distracted; the ability to think about several things at the same time also meant that sometimes my thoughts would run away on me, and this was not a good time to make such a mistake.

The scent trail the Denalis had left was all too easy to follow; they basically made a straight path while avoiding highly populated areas. I was just passing by Port Angeles when I increased the pace with which I was making decisions. I decided to plan a trip to South America and began going over every little detail in the trip—making decisions about which outfits to pack, which day to travel, what time of day to leave, re-thinking the packing, again and changing my mind hundreds of times to accommodate for every minute detail I could think of.

It was getting harder. I wanted to spy on the Denalis and the Cullens, but I was beginning to feel as though my mind had become an active beehive with all the different thoughts running through my head. I knew I had to come from downwind if I wanted to be able to go unnoticed. The wind could carry my scent very far if I wasn't being careful, and all my well-laid plans would go to waste.

I tried my best not to notice the sign that welcomed me to the city of Forks, but I couldn't be sure that I was able to do so. I made a large detour, coming toward the city from a completely different direction than the one the Denalis used. The wind was blowing toward me, and I allowed myself a small measure of optimism. The more information I could gather about them, the better a plan I could come up with eventually.

I decided to change my travel plans and go to Russia instead. That would take me to a different continent from here and a safe distance from the Volturi. The vast unpopulated regions of the Russian wilderness would serve as a nice hunting ground.

_And it will also keep the stupid seer off my back._

I caught the scent of the Cullens at the same time as another scent registered in my mind. It was one of the sweetest and most appealing scents I had ever come across. My feet changed course without me consciously giving the order to, and my nose led me toward the smell. I felt the venom pooling inside my mouth, and the excitement rising at the prospect of feeding on something so sweet after months of hunting stinking animals that tasted like dirt.

_Well, at least there is one good thing that comes out of feeding on animals—people start smelling really good after a while,_ I thought with a small chuckle.

All plans of following the Denalis or spying on their meeting with the Cullens were forgotten as I neared the small white cottage that was hidden on the outskirts of the town. The wonderful aroma was coming from that house. I briefly noted that there was also a vampire scent around the house, but it wasn't strong enough to indicate that it was still present.

_All the more for me._

I heard two heartbeats inside the house, one on the bottom floor and the other on the second. I took a deep gulp of air and almost moaned as the sweet taste filled my nostrils.

_It's almost worth restraining myself for months if it means that I get this kind of reward._

I entered the house from the back door. _Those stupid humans, always trusting their locks to keep everyone out..._

I didn't expect to find myself face to face with the human as soon as I came inside, but I did. It was a man, and he was responsible for only part of the scent. The second heartbeat coming from the floor above me indicated that the sweeter of the two meals was yet to come.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" the man demanded, and I laughed.

_Silly, fragile human._

I advanced, and the man took a step backward, darting out of the room. _You can run, but you can't hide._ I almost forgot how fun it was; the thrill of the hunt was ten times better when the target was human and smelling so good.

I was out of the room within seconds, stealthily enough so that the human didn't hear me behind him until it was too late. I was already behind him with my hand on his shoulder and my hand over his mouth.

"There is no need to scream. It won't do you any good, and I really wouldn't want you to scare whoever it is upstairs," I said in a quiet tone.

I loved seeing the way his pupils widened and his eyes filled with panic. I heard the sound of footsteps above us and then someone asking, "Dad? Is everything okay? Who are you talking to?"

_I guess good scent runs in their family._

I was a fool to allow the sound to distract me, but then again, I _was_ an easily distracted creature by nature. The stupid human I was holding decided to use my moment of distraction to try to shoot me. The bullet ricocheted, and the scent of fresh blood filled my nostrils.

My instincts took over, and I forgot everything around me when I attached my mouth to the wound in the human's shoulder and lapped the flowing blood. I moaned as the ambrosia-like taste of it filled my mouth. In the back of my mind, I heard the human's feeble attempts to escape me and the sound of the human girl screaming something, but I paid no attention to either. I was savoring the taste of the first decent meal I had had in months.

There was only one thing that could register in my mind while I was feeding, only one instinct stronger than all else—self-preservation. But I wasn't quick enough. The instant my mind registered the presence of danger from behind, I was pulled away from my meal and thrown toward the kitchen.

The vampire pinned me to the ground and was on me before I could recover.

_That son of a bitch is a fast one,_ I thought as I tried my best to avoid the flurry of biting and hissing that came from my opponent.

He growled at me, and I growled back.

_Who the hell does he think he is, trying to steal my meal from me? I'll show him what I do to those who cross me!_ At that thought, I channeled all of the strength I had and pushed him off of me, jumping back up to my feet just in time to dodge an incoming attack.

I tried striking at him from multiple directions, feinting swipes and hissing to try to throw him off of my actual target, but nothing seemed to work; he was too fast, and he was anticipating my every move. It felt almost as though he was picking them up from my mind as soon as I had decided on them. I made an aggressive lunge at him, frustrated, and was thrown off of my feet again, straight through the back door.

I ended up in the back yard, and I managed to scramble on my feet before he struck again. The bastard was quick and well trained, but I was no rookie myself. I held my ground fairly well, considering the fact that none of my moves seemed to go as I planned. I sensed more vampires coming our way, and my every instinct told me that this was the time to make a quick getaway or I would pay for that sweet meal with my own life.

I panicked and made a mistake, striking at him too slowly and at a target that he foresaw. My opponent used that mistake to grab my arm and tear it almost completely away from my body. I roared as the pain filled my body but caught a lucky break. The vampire was suddenly distracted as the human girl screamed something from inside the house. I could see the dilemma in his eyes. Although I couldn't understand why he would care so much about the human, it was clear that he did. He allowed himself a short glance toward the house and I took the opportunity and made a run for it, holding my injured arm close to my body. The first thing I had learned about fighting in my long years as a vampire was that sometimes retreat was the better option. I could hear and smell the Denalis, the Cullens, and several unfamiliar scents in the forest, so I turned and ran in the opposite direction.

It was a narrow escape. I knew that I couldn't go back to the cabin in Alaska; it was the first place they would check. It was time to retreat and rethink my plans. But I didn't come out empty handed from the ordeal, oh, no. Not only did I get one of the best meals I had ever had, but I also got some very important information about the Cullens. I had no doubt that the attacking vampire was one of them; his eyes gave him away.

_You may have driven me away this time, but this isn't over._

w.W.w

**Bella**

I could hardly see anything past the tears that filled my eyes, but the image was burned forever in my memory. Charlie, my dad, the last relative I had on this planet, dying in the hands of a vampire. A _vegetarian_ vampire. The paradox of a golden-eyed vampire with his mouth tainted with my father's blood stopped me in my tracks for a moment.

I screamed at the top of my lungs again and ran down the stairs to my father. I noticed that the vampire was thrown off, but I couldn't let myself look away from my dad. I stumbled over the last step and landed on the floor with a painful thud. I didn't care. The pain I felt was nothing compared to the pain in my chest as I saw my dad lying in a growing pool of blood.

I crawled to him and searched for a pulse. His eyes were closed, and I didn't see any movement from his chest.

"No, Dad, please, no!" I cried. I didn't feel a pulse, but I knew that I was probably not doing it right. I tried breathing through my mouth because the rusted smell of the blood was making me dizzy. "Please, Dad, don't leave me. Please, Charlie, fight!" I yelled.

I tried pressing the wound in his shoulder to stop the bleeding. My vision blurred with tears, and the words didn't come to my lips. I was begging inside my mind, begging that it wasn't too late but knowing that it might be.

I heard voices and felt someone touch my shoulder, trying to pull me away from Charlie.

"No!" I screamed. "Don't touch me!"

"Bella, please." The soft voice was familiar, but I couldn't place it. I didn't dare to look away from my father's face, afraid that if I did, he would disappear. Some part of me already knew that he was gone, but I refused to believe it.

The next few hours were forever lost to me. I knew that someone called an ambulance and the police, that I was finally pulled away from my dad, and that he was taken away. I thought I even heard someone talking to me and telling me that everything will be okay. I wanted to laugh at the words. How could anything ever be okay again? But instead of laughter, I heard a whimper coming from somewhere and felt a blanket being wrapped around my shoulders. I didn't even know I was shaking or that I was cold until the blanket was wrapped around me.

I clutched the fabric with my hands and stared at the floor where the red ugly bloodstains marked the place when my father had lain moments or hours ago. Time held no meaning to me, not anymore. I didn't even care that I could still smell the blood or that I still felt nauseous. There was only one thing on my mind—I was alone. I had just lost the last family member I had on this earth, and I couldn't even tell anyone how he died.

Suddenly, I could see every lie I had ever told my father, every half-truth I said, trying to protect him. I could see each and every moment where I could have spent more time with him and chose to go to the Cullens instead. The Cullens. Edward. Alice. They promised me that everything would be fine, that there was no need for me to worry. _And look where not worrying got me..._

I felt colder with each passing moment. The blanket did nothing to alleviate the chill that had taken residence in my chest. I stared at the floor, clutching the blanket so hard that I could feel my nails digging into my palms, and sank into darkness.

I heard someone scream my name, but I was too far gone to be able to answer. I welcomed the darkness; it meant an escape from the pain. It meant an escape from reality. In the darkness, I could pretend that I was sleeping and that tomorrow was my birthday. I could pretend that nothing happened and that I was going to wake up soon and go to school.

I imagined that I would see my dad again, coming from work early with a smile on his face. I could tell him how much I loved him and how happy I was that I was able to live with him after mom...

But my dreams suddenly changed, and I could no longer control them. The darkness turned red and painful. I could see nothing but the horrible scene of my father's death playing over and over again before my eyes. The sound of a gunshot, the predator with his head bent over my father, and then my father's lifeless body lying in a pool of his own blood on the floor of our foyer.

I screamed, but no sound came out. I wanted to run, but my body was paralyzed. I tried opening my eyes, but my eyelids were too heavy. I was trapped in my own personal hell.

w.W.w

I don't know how long I had stayed in the darkness, haunted by the last moments of my father's life. I only know that it must have been hours. When I was finally able to open my eyes and escape, it was dark outside and I was lying in a bed, wearing a different outfit than the one I was wearing before.

My vision was still blurry, and it took me a moment to realize that I was still crying. Waking up from the hell I was trapped in didn't ease the pain inside my chest. I felt a presence in my room, but I didn't bother to acknowledge it in any way. I didn't care who was there. I only knew that it wasn't my father, it would never be him again.

I didn't recognize the room I was in. I assumed that I was at the Cullen house, but it was of no importance.

I wished I could feel numb, but I couldn't. Instead, all I could feel was guilt, loneliness, and pain.

It was my fault. I knew it. I insisted on being part of the supernatural world, and it finally caught up with me; but instead of me paying the price, it was Charlie.

"Bella, sweetheart." A soft voice called from somewhere in the room. "How are you feeling, love?"

I felt as though I should know the person who was talking to me, but I couldn't find the will to think about it. It wasn't the voice I wanted to hear; it was too soft and too young. The only voice I wanted to hear was my father's, and this one didn't belong to him.

I felt another wave of guilt and pain wash over me, and it nearly choked me. I would never hear my father's voice again. I would never see him coming home from his shift and smile at me. Worse than anything else was the searing pain of the knowledge that I was the one to blame for it.

I closed my eyes and let my mind drift again. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I didn't want to face reality. It was too brutal. But I couldn't keep the voices from penetrating my thoughts.

"Why did...go to...Bella's house?"

I heard only parts of the conversation, but it was enough to understand.

"...must...followed our scent," someone answered.

Another layer of guilt settled over my chest. The vampire followed the scent of Edward and Alice to my house. If I didn't invite them over, if I didn't go to their place, then the vampire wouldn't have come after my father.

I wanted to be angry. I wanted to confront Alice and demand to know the truth. Why had she not seen the vampire attacking my father? I wanted to feel the righteous fury fill me and lash out at Edward for not being there in time to save Charlie. I wanted to be able to blame someone, anyone, for not keeping him safe. But there was no one to blame but myself.

I buried my face in the pillow and felt my body shake with sobs. Everything was wrong. The feel of the sheets was too smooth, the pillow smelled too sweet, and the room was too warm. I felt a strong pair of arms wrap around me. For the first time since I met Edward, I tried to shake his touch away.

I didn't deserve comfort. I didn't deserve to feel happiness or peace. I was as guilty of killing my father as though I had shot him myself.

"Bella?"

I could hear the pain in his voice as I continued to try and shake his arms away.

"Don't touch me!" I managed to mumble between sobs.

His arms slowly left me, but he continued to speak.

"I'm so sorry, Bella. I should have been there earlier. I should have stopped him. I'm so sorry."

His words only made me cry harder. I wanted to tell him that it was not _his_ fault but mine, and yet the words didn't pass through my lips—I was too choked by guilt and tears to be able to speak.

After a while, he tried to comfort me again, this time by gently caressing my shoulder and my back. I flinched away again. I didn't deserve love. I was a true monster, and monsters don't deserve love or compassion.

"Please, my love, tell me what can I do to make it better?" Edward begged.

"I want to go home," I whispered.

"Are you sure?" he asked, hesitating.

"Yes," I said a bit louder.

"Okay. I will drive you there."

"Thank you."

I slowly sat up on the bed and pushed the covers away. Edward tried to help me, but I refused. It took me several moments before I felt composed enough to be able to stand on my own. I found my shoes next to the bed and put them on. I needed to hold myself together just long enough so that I could be home when I fell apart again. I wanted to be surrounded with Charlie's scent and possessions. I wanted to feel as close to him as was possible.

Edward led me downstairs where the rest of his family and several unknown faces—whom I presumed to be the Denalis—were sitting, anxiously.

Esme made an attempt to approach me, but I shook my head. I didn't want her to hug me. I was a monster and didn't deserve her compassion. I did my best to keep my eyes on my feet. I thought it would be best if I didn't fall or catch the eyes of any of them—because then I would surely burst into tears. and I wouldn't be able to even make it to my house.

I could hear Edward murmuring something to his family and their guests, but it was too fast and a little too low for me to understand. I didn't care.

I walked slowly to the front door and opened it.

"Bella," Alice's voice came from very near me.

I stopped.

"What do you want?" I asked. I meant it to be harsh, and I knew that it would hurt her at that point, but it was for the best. Alice deserved a friend who wasn't a complete selfish monster. In the long run, it would hurt her less.

"Please, don't do it, Bella," she begged.

I didn't dare to look up at her, I knew that it would take nothing more than a single glance at her face—which would no doubt look just as heartbroken as her tone implied—for me to forget my determination and change my mind.

"I'm not doing anything, Alice," I said firmly. "I just want to go home."

I turned away from her and walked down the steps of the front porch. I tried to keep my emotions in check, I embraced the guilt and shame, but I could not let myself fall into pieces, not yet.

Edward drove me to my house in silence. When he parked, I continued to sit in the car for a little while longer, just staring at the house. There was still some yellow police tape on the front door, but Charlie's cruiser was no longer parked in the driveway. It was hard, seeing another proof of his absence.

"What is...?" My voice cracked, and I had to take a deep breath before I could continue my question. "What is the official story?" I needed to focus on something other than this new emptiness that had taken residence in my chest and my life.

"An intruder broke into the house from the back door. There was a struggle, causing one of the neighbors to call the police. Charlie reached for his gun but the perpetrator got to it before him," Edward replied in a calm, dry voice. He was detached, and it helped me handle the facts. "Alice and I were supposed to meet you for dinner. When you didn't answer your phone, we got worried. We arrived at the same time as the police."

I nodded.

"The police would like to question you when you're ready," Edward continued, his voice gentler now. It was harder. I would have preferred that he use the dry tone from before. "Deputy Mark said that he will call you tomorrow."

I nodded again.

I reached for the handle and opened the door. Edward was next to me as soon as I exited the car. I ignored his presence as I walked toward the house. I took the spare key from the place where it was hidden and used it to unlock the door.

"I would like to be left alone, if you don't mind," I whispered, not looking at him.

"Are you sure, Bella?" he asked, worried. "I don't think it's the best—"

"Edward." I cut him off. "I would like to be left alone," I repeated, much harsher and through gritted teeth.

"Bella? Why are you acting like this? I know it's painful—"

" _Painful_?" I shrieked, turning to look at him. His face was distorted because the tears—that were never too far from my eyes—had once again disturbed my vision. "You know _nothing_ about _'painful'_ , Edward. You have no clue how I feel or why," I spat. "I think I have the right to want to be alone. I know it's hard for you to let me think for myself, but I'm asking, no, I'm _demanding_ that you _leave me the hell alone!_ " I was shouting by the end. I was also crying. My heart was breaking inside me for lashing out at him like this.

_It's for the best,_ I reminded myself, wrapping my arms around my chest, holding myself together as I felt another hole rip open in my chest. _Like ripping a bandage,_ I thought, _it will hurt badly now, but it will lessen in the future. It's better this way._ I knew I was trying to convince myself without much success. I needed to go inside before I lost the last bit of dignity I still possessed.

"Goodbye, Edward," I said in a much quieter voice and allowed myself one last look at his face.

His golden eyes would haunt me forever. The pain in them was mirroring my own. His jaw was set firmly, and I could tell he was gritting his teeth.

"I won't say goodbye, Bella," he said, looking at me pointedly. His eyes were burning with anger and pain. "I refuse to say goodbye."

"Then so be it," I whispered.

He didn't try to stop me when I entered the house and closed the door behind me. As soon as I was inside, I pressed myself to the door, holding my arms tightly around my torso, and listened for Edward's car. It took him longer than I thought it would to drive away, but once I heard the engine start and the car leave, I finally let go.

I collapsed on the floor in gut wrenching sobs. I was truly alone. I wished I could blame someone, but all I had to blame was myself.

w.W.w

**Edward**

I stood outside her door for several minutes after she walked inside, listening to the sound of her heart beating. She didn't move from the door. Her breathing was shallow and fast. I could smell the tears that must have been spilling from her eyes, but I couldn't hear anything more.

Alice arrived a moment later.

_I'll take the car back, Edward. Watch her for us,_ she thought. Her tone was somber and hurt. I simply nodded and handed her the keys.

I was in no shape to drive, and I sure as hell wasn't leaving Bella alone, no matter what she asked.

As soon as Alice drove away, I heard Bella's body slump on the floor and the most horrible sound coming from inside the house—Bella was crying so hard that I could feel my long dead heart breaking again.

She had told me goodbye not five minutes ago, but I refused to let it to be the end of our relationship. There was never going to be a time when I could stop loving her. Bella was my mate, forever. That kind of bond wasn't something that could just go away with a few words.

I expected Bella to be angry. I expected her to lash out at me and at Alice. I welcomed it, in fact. But what I didn't expect, although I should have, was for Bella to close herself off like that.

Alice had warned me, just as Bella was coming around, that she was going to pull away. But I wouldn't let her do that. Even now, I felt as though my body was being torn from the inside. Just the sound of Bella in such agony was horrendously painful to me.

_Fuck it, I'm not going to let her be all alone. No matter what she said, she needs me, even if she can't admit it to herself._

I used the back door, making a mental note to have the lock fixed as I entered, and made my way to Bella. My heart broke again as I saw her lying on the floor, sobbing and calling to her father. I picked her up and carried her to her bedroom. I didn't think she even noticed me; she was so lost in her pain. I took off her shoes, and she curled into a ball on the bed. I left her room and took a spare blanket from the linen closet.

Just as I was about to cover her with the blanket, she turned to look at me, and I saw fire in her eyes. It was better than the pain that had filled them earlier, but I suspected that the anger that was in them now wasn't going to bode well for me.

"Get out!" she screeched. "I told you to leave me alone! Don't you ever listen?" She jumped from her bed and glared at me. I had a good foot over her in height, but I still took a step back in face of her rage. "It's your fault! I should never have gotten myself involved with you and your _family_! It's your fault he's gone! I'm all alone, and _you_ are the reason," she shouted, tears streaming down her cheeks.

I was stunned. Her words outside her house were hurtful, but I ignored them, telling myself that she was simply grieving. But this was more than just painful. It was nearly unbearable. She was right, of course. It _was_ my fault that her father died. Had I not brought her to my life, she would never have had to deal with the loss of the only blood relative she had on this planet.

She didn't say it, but I knew she saw me as a monster. It was the one thing I had tried to avoid being. Even during my years with the Volturi, I never wanted to become a monster. But I should have known better. _I brought so much pain to the only person I have ever loved. I truly am a monster,_ I realized.

"I _never_ want to see you again!" Bella shouted. Her face was flushed, and her cheeks were wet; but her eyes were unwavering, and it was at this point that I knew she meant it. She didn't want to see me _ever_ again.

I allowed myself one last look at her, committing everything about her to my memory.

"I'm sorry, Bella," I whispered and hung my head. "I will leave you alone."

"Good!" she shouted and threw herself on her bed.

I let myself out of her house. The sound of the door shutting behind me was echoing in my chest. My heart may not have beaten for more than eighty years, but it was now broken beyond repair.

w.W.w

**Rosalie**

_What on earth were they thinking?_ I felt like throwing a tantrum of epic proportions as I watched the scene in Bella's bedroom unfold.

"Why are you doing this?" I yelled at the screen. I didn't know which one of them I was asking, but I was fully aware that neither one could answer me.

"Calm down, Rosalie," Gaia said in a clam tone.

"Calm down? _Calm down?_ How can I calm down when these two idiots are ruining _everything_?" I yelled. "I wish I could just hit them both on their heads and lock them inside a room. I would leave them inside it until they talk it out!"

"You can't do that, Rosalie."

"Why not?" I turned to glare at her.

"Don't glare at me, young lady," Gaia said sternly.

My anger deflated immediately. "I'm sorry," I sighed. "I just can't believe they are throwing away everything...If they just talk about their feelings..."

"It's not always easy to talk about your feelings, Rosalie," Gaia said, calm again. "They need to handle this on their own. You cannot influence them."

"You mean I can't..." I trailed off.

Gaia nodded.

I understood then. "This is their trial."

"Yes, it is."

I buried my face in my hands. I felt like sobbing myself. There was so much at stake here, so much...I _needed_ them to work it out.

"Don't lose your faith, Rosalie." Gaia placed a hand over my shoulder, squeezing it lightly in comfort. "It is not over yet."

But I couldn't help it. I began doubting myself, second-guessing every single move I made in the past seventy-two years. _Hindsight is 20/20_ , I thought, desperate. I wished I could have saved Charlie, but I couldn't do so any more than I had. I gave Alice as much warning as I could, the moment I saw where he was headed. But it wasn't enough. Laurent had taken the life of Bella's father, and now both Bella and Edward blamed themselves.

_Ugh! How can they be so blind and stupid?_

"Love makes us blind very often, Rosalie," Gaia reminded me, "and guilt causes us to act in a foolish way. But don't give up just yet. There is still time, and there is still hope."

"Three days are _not_ enough time!" I insisted. "I try to hold on to my hope, but I just don't see how they can handle it in such a short period of time." I felt like crying myself.

Bella was alone in her bedroom, sobbing her heart out. Edward stood in the middle of their meadow, still as a statue, but I could see that his eyes were dead. They were both hurting so much. _If I could just..._

"No, you can't," Gaia stopped my train of thought before I even completed it. "You've done everything that you could for them. Now it's time to sit back and let them figure it out on their own. You can't live their lives for them, Rosalie."

"I know." _But I don't have to like it._

"You need a distraction, and I have the perfect thing..."

I listened to Gaia as she explained her plan to me. She was right, a distraction was something I needed, and it also gave me something to do that would keep me occupied and stop me from driving myself crazy.

I looked once again at the screen that showed Bella finally fall asleep and Edward still in the meadow and took a deep breath. _Don't let me down, guys. I'm counting on you._

* * *

**I know this is a hard chapter. It was as hard for me to write it as I am sure it is hard for you to read it. I'm not a big fan of angst, so there won't be many chapters like this one, I promise.**

**Thank you for reading,**

**Alley Cat.**


	32. Arrangements

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I woke up screaming several times during the night, each time hoping that the nightmare was only that—a bad dream—but realizing a moment later that it was not a dream, only a reflection of reality. Finally around half past four in the morning, I gave up and got out of the bed.

I decided to do some cleaning around the house. It didn't require thinking, and it was physically demanding enough that I would be too tired to think.

I started with my room, moved on to the bathroom, then to the kitchen, and finally tackled the foyer. It was the hardest room to work through thus far, but I knew that going inside Charlie's room would be even harder. I couldn't bear thinking about going in there, no matter how much I wanted to drown myself in my father's belongings.

Unfortunately, it didn't take nearly as long as I wanted it to. I was done with the house by the time seven o'clock rolled around and the sun rose. I took a shower to wash the sweat and dirt off of my body and allowed myself to break down and cry once more.

It took a while for the tears to finally run dry and the water to run cold. Once I was shaking so hard that my teeth chattered, I decided to leave the bathroom and put some clothes on. I dragged myself to my closet and pulled out a pair of old jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. I put on a thick pair of socks and a sweater as well because it was still very cold. I glanced at the clock and saw that I wasn't nearly as long in the shower as I thought I was. I knew that I had two choices: either stay at home and drive myself crazy or go to school and try to lose my mind in the classes.

I sat on my bed for another fifteen minutes, debating. I knew that I would be stared at in school. Some would stare with pity, and some with curiosity. I also knew that I would be questioned and discussed. But sitting alone inside the house was beginning to look as though it wasn't a better option; it was too quiet for the most part, and every time I heard even the faintest of sounds, I jumped. No, staying at home didn't carry any appeal to me whatsoever.

The ringing sound of the phone brought me out of my musings.

"Hello?"

"Miss Swan?" The voice on the other end of the line sounded official.

"Yes?" I hated the way my voice shook. I knew that there wasn't anything the authorities could tell me that would make the situation any worse, but I still felt my stomach turn in fear.

"This is Deputy Mark. I was wondering, would it be possible for me to talk to you about yesterday's events?"

I sighed. I remembered Edward saying that the police wanted to talk to me. _It would be best to get it over with sooner rather than later._ "Yes. When would you like me to come to the station?"

There was a small pause before he spoke. "Are you sure you want to do this at the station?" Deputy Mark's voice was much softer, and I remembered the many times that I had seen him and Charlie joke around at the station on the quiet shifts. Forks had a very low crime rate, and it wasn't uncommon for me to drop by at the station and find my dad and his deputies talking and enjoying themselves.

It would be painful to see the station as a witness, but it would be better than sitting around the house and trying to find the courage to enter Charlie's bedroom.

"It's okay. I think it will help me to get out of the house for a while."

"Alright. When can you get here?"

"Thirty minutes?"

There was another small pause. "That's good. I'll see you then."

We said our goodbyes and hung up after that.

This was a better option than the two I had thought of earlier. I sighed again and wrapped my arms around my torso. I felt as though if I didn't hold myself together physically, I would fall apart completely. I already felt as though my heart was forcefully removed from my chest, leaving a bleeding gaping hole, and I feared that my lungs would soon fail as well because even breathing felt hard.

A few minutes later when I was fairly certain that I could stand up without taking the risk of having my insides spill on the floor, I put my coat on and left the house. I didn't bother with breakfast. My stomach was twisted into a thousand knots, and I knew food was definitely out of the question.

The sound of the loud engine of my red truck startled me. I was so used to the soft purr of the Audi Edward drove that I forgot how loud my truck could be. The thoughts of Edward and his car were almost as painful as the thoughts about my father, so I shifted my focus to the mundane task of driving myself to the police station.

It was easier to focus on needing to shift a gear or turn the wheel, signal a turn and push the breaks, rather than let my mind wander.

I got to the police station a few minutes ahead of time and was led to an interview room to wait for Deputy Mark. The interview rooms, along with the jail cells, were the only rooms I had not been in while visiting my dad.

I knew I had no reason to feel like a criminal waiting to be interrogated, but I couldn't escape the feeling. The room had that effect on me. It was a fairly small room with nothing in it but a table and four chairs in the middle. There was one window with shutters on it and a large mirror on the wall that I knew must be a two-way mirror. For a moment, I wondered whether there was someone on the other side of the mirror, watching me.

Maybe I did have reason to feel like a criminal. After all, if it weren't for my involvement in the supernatural, Charlie would still be alive. Worse, I was about to lie to the police about what I saw and heard. Wouldn't that make me a criminal?

I couldn't leave the station fast enough. As soon as Deputy Mark told me we were done, I made a beeline to the exit. I could see and feel everyone's stares of pity. I was so grateful to leave that even the heavy rain that was pouring outside didn't bother me too much. I knew I was about to come apart at the seams, and I wanted no witnesses around me when I did.

The drive home was slow and tedious. With both the weather and the tears obscuring my vision, I couldn't afford going over the speed limit.

I only realized I was shaking when I tried to fit the key inside the keyhole. Suddenly, I noticed the sound of my teeth chattering and registered the fact that my entire body was shaking. On my third attempt, I succeeded in unlocking the door and entered the empty house.

I tried my best not to stare at the floor where only hours ago my father laid, bleeding to death. But avoiding the sight did nothing to prevent the pain from tearing at me from the inside. My vision blurred again, and I choked on my tears.

I was truly alone in the world.

I took off my shoes and hung my jacket before going upstairs to my bedroom. I felt spent and empty as I curled inside myself and let sleep take over. The combination of the pouring rain outside and the lack of sleep at night finally lulled me into another round of restless sleep.

Deputy Mark called about an hour and a half later, waking me up. He told me that my father's body was released from the autopsy and asked if I needed help with the funeral arrangements. I gave him a brief run through of what I wanted, and he said he would make sure it was done.

I chose a simple ceremony; Charlie—just like me—was never one to look for attention. Deputy Mark called me back two hours later, just as I was getting out of another hot shower. The funeral ceremony was scheduled for the day after tomorrow—a Friday—in the Church where Angela Weber's father pastored. After the funeral, there was going to be an official 21-gun salute at the gravesite to be performed by seven officers from this county and the neighboring ones. It was a bit much in my book, but I knew that Charlie would have been honored and didn't argue.

Deputy Mark offered his wife's help with the gathering after the burial, but I told him that I could handle that on my own. He had done way beyond what I would have expected him to, and I was immensely grateful for everything already.

I remained seated in the kitchen for a long time after I ended the call. There were so many memories in this tiny room. _There are too many memories in this house_ , I thought. Everywhere I looked my mind conjured up a memory of Charlie.

It took me a long while to come to the conclusion that I couldn't stay in this house, in this town, where everything just kept reminding me of what I had and lost. I didn't want to go back to Phoenix, either. That place held memories that were even worse than those Forks held. _Florida_ , I decided. It was far enough away that the memories wouldn't be as haunting.

A small voice in the back of my mind whispered that I wasn't completely alone and that if I left, I would be leaving more than just memories of Charlie. I would be leaving Edward and Alice. I would be saying goodbye to Carlisle, who saved my life, and to Esme, who was like a mother to me in the past weeks. Even the mere thought was tearing yet another wound open inside me, but this time I welcomed the pain. I was the monster who caused the death of my father. I deserved it.

w.W.w

**Edward**

Only my long years of training as an elite guard allowed me to keep myself composed and focused. I didn't allow myself to think about Bella's hurtful words or about the fact that she had, in essence, broke up with me. Tracking down Laurent and disposing of him was my top priority at the moment. He attacked my mate. Death would be an all too easy punishment for him, but I was certain that Carlisle wouldn't approve of the various tortures I had come up with on the short way from Bella's house to mine.

Jasper intercepted me at the front door with a progress report.

"David and Irina are backtracking to Denali to see if Laurent went back there. Carmen and Eleazar are checking out the area to the west of the city. Emmett is using his computer skills to see if Laurent ordered any airplane tickets. Kate and Tanya are checking out the closest airports. I traced his scent from Bella's house to the highway, where it ended. So far, no luck."

His briefing held dry facts only, and I was thankful for it. Jasper, as a fellow soldier, understood best what I needed at the moment. Even though his thoughts betrayed that he did notice my pain, he didn't comment on it.

"What about—?"

"Alice can't see anything," Jasper cut me off, guessing what I was about to ask. "He keeps changing his mind." _She's blaming herself Edward. You should talk to her._

"I know." I closed my eyes and pinched my nose bridge, a habit that stayed with me since my human years. "I'll go talk to her now. Keep me updated if anything changes."

"I will."

I traced Alice's thoughts to the riverbank behind the house. She was sitting on a small bolder and staring at the forest. Her thoughts were a mingled mish-mash of visions, frustration, and guilt.

"Don't blame yourself, Alice," I said softly as I neared her.

_I can't help it,_ she thought.

"There was nothing you could have done, and you gave me the warning just in time to save Bella," I argued.

_But not Charlie._

"I know."

I sat beside her and took a deep breath. We kept quiet for several more minutes while Alice continued to look for Laurent's decisions. Unfortunately, it appeared as though the Denalis had told him about the way Alice's gift worked, and he was annoyingly good at hiding his decisions from her. Even I began to feel a bit dizzy—as impossible as it might sound—from all the small visions she was getting.

"Alice, stop trying to work yourself into a perpetual headache," I said.

_It's either that or wallow in guilt._

"The frying pan or the fire, not much of a choice there," I commented. The joke was a bit lame, but at least it got a chuckle from her.

"Thanks, Edward."

"You're welcome." I put my hand on her tiny shoulder and squeezed lightly in a comforting gesture. "You're my favorite sister in the whole world, you know that?" I teased.

Alice rolled her eyes at me, both mentally and physically. "I'm your _only_ sister."

"So?" I shrugged.

Alice giggled again. "Thank you."

I smiled. I didn't need her to form the thought in her mind to know that she was thanking me for distracting her. If I were to be honest, distracting her was a good distraction for me as well. That way, I could momentarily put the thoughts of Bella and our quarrel from earlier aside.

I felt the pain in my chest lessen a bit, but it didn't last long. A few quiet minutes later, Alice suddenly froze, and her thoughts began to fly in a pattern I could already recognize. She was having a vision, and a powerful one at that.

It was almost too fast for me to catch it. Bella at some unknown apartment, one that looked old and neglected, curled up in a ball on a bedspread that had seen better days. Then, I saw myself in a room very similar to the one Bella was in; it was in a deplorable condition and judging from the way I looked in that snapshot. I was in no better condition myself, underfed and miserable.

Several more snapshots flew through Alice's mind as she searched for possible causes to her vision. Bella locking the door of her current house, and a realtor sign with the words "For Sale" printed on them; me, appearing to be either arguing or pleading—probably both—somewhere in the middle of the road; Bella in an airport—Sea-Tac airport—getting ready to board a plane. I caught the name of the destination off the board over the stewardess's head. Florida.

"She decided to go to Florida?" I asked, baffled. "Why would she decide to leave? And why Florida?"

"I don't know," Alice groaned. Her beautiful face contorted in pain. "She had just made the decision. Oh, Bella, what are you thinking?"

"I don't know, but damn it, I'm _going_ to find out!" I nearly growled the words as I jumped to my feet.

"Edward, wait!" Alice called after me. "It will only make things worse!"

"How can it be any worse than what you saw?" I spat.

Alice was reciting some stupid TV commercial for a McDonald's Happy Meal in Japanese, of all things, but it was keeping me out of her thoughts efficiently enough. "Alice!"

"You don't want to see it, trust me," she insisted. "Don't go there. Let her deal with things. She's got a lot on her mind right now, and you'll only make it more complicated for her. She'll come around."

"When? When she's all miserable, curled up in a ball on a shaggy-looking bed in freaking Florida?" I was yelling by the time I had finished my sentence and instantly felt the artificial waves of Jasper's gift trying to calm me down. It calmed me down somewhat, but still earned Jasper a growl from me.

"Just wait until after Charlie's funeral on Friday, please!" Alice was practically begging as she held on to my forearm with a grip so tight it was shocking, coming from someone as tiny as she was.

"Fine," I grumbled, giving up. It was hard to argue with the little elf when she had her emotion-manipulating soul-mate working his mojo on you. "I'm going for a run. I've got my cell on me. If there's anything new..."

"You'll be the second to know."

I gave her an annoyed look and got an eye roll in return.

_As in, second after me? Sheesh!_

I sprinted toward the Olympic National Park without waiting for another word to be said. But today was doomed to be the worst fucking day of my too-fucking-long life, no matter what I did. Running wasn't even half as liberating as it usually was for me, probably because, for the first time since I first woke to this life, I felt as though I was running from the best thing that ever happened to me. There was nothing fun or liberating about it.

w.W.w

I returned home around midnight. There were no calls in the hours I spent away, so I wasn't surprised to learn that the situation was much the same as it was before I left—Laurent was still on the run, and there was still no trace of him. The only advancement made was that the airports in the entire state were checked for his scent. Every possible airline, charter, or plane-rental company— _yeah, apparently there IS such a thing_ —was checked for reservations made by him, and almost the entire state of Alaska was canvased for Laurent's scent.

Nothing came up. Nada. Zilch.

_Okay, Edward, that's really not helping,_ I chided myself.

"Edward, I'm glad you're back." Alice suddenly appeared next to me.

"What is it?" I looked at her eagerly.

"Not what you think, I'm sorry."

"Hey, are you the mind reader or am I?" I teased.

Alice ignored me. "You have to call Alec, and the sooner the better."

It took me several moments to understand what she was talking about, and that was annoying because usually I wasn't this slow. "On it."

I pulled out my cell phone and left the house. I needed a quiet place where no background noise could betray my whereabouts. I took a deep breath, another annoyingly human habit of mine, and punched in the number of the Volturi Elite Guard.

Alec answered on the fourth ring. "Hello?"

"Damn, dude, I was about to give up on you," I teased. "Are you too busy to answer the phone these days, or are you _entertaining_ again?"

Alec laughed. "Damn it, Tony. I missed you, man! It's deadly boring without your charming personality here!"

"You're already dead, Al. You'll get over it." I felt almost better just by talking to him. Although we were on what could be considered opposite sides now, Alec was still one of the very few people I considered my friends. "So, what have you been up to lately? Is Jane still in her tower, working on her Aramaic?"

"Nah, she moved on to some other godforsaken language. I tell you, the girl will eventually find herself turning into a librarian or something!"

I pictured Jane, with her deadly gift, in a pair of horn-rimmed glasses and an awful floral-print dress and burst out laughing. If there was one thing I liked about Alec, it was his ability to make me laugh. Too bad his allegiance was on the wrong side.

"That's one hell of a mental!" I managed to say between bursts of laughter.

"I bet it is. So, not that I'm not happy to hear from you, but what's the sitch?"

"The what?" Alec's slang was sometimes beyond me.

"The sitch? You know; the situation? Only shorter."

I could almost _hear_ the shrug he was giving me. "What are you, Alec? A sixteen-year-old schoolgirl stuck in the eighties?"

"Whatever. You still didn't answer my question, Tony." Alec was well aware that his appearance was slightly feminine, but as he was favoring both genders equally, he wasn't fazed with my teasing.

"Just ran into Fran the other day while passing through Chicago," I said. "Thought I should give you guys a call, see how are things up there in the royal chambers."

"Royal chambers, my ass." Alec huffed.

"It is big enough," I inserted.

"Shut up. 'Tis not!"

I chuckled. I almost forgot how fun it was to bicker with the guy. "So what's the latest gossip?"

"Nothing new, really. As I said, it's kind of boring since you left. No one is trying to escape into the Brazilian forest. Master Aro hadn't been pissed in ages..."

"Very funny, Alec. I only _left_ once, and it was for the _Russian_ wilderness."

"But we found you in Brazil," Alec pointed out. "At least you admit to pissing Master Aro off."

"What can I say, it's a gift."

"It's a mental disease; that's what it is."

"I still stick to the term 'gift'".

"Nah, a vampire has got to be mental to piss off the most powerful vampire on earth on a daily basis the way you did," Alec insisted and then sighed. "I miss those days."

"Then it is slow over there. What, no rule-breaking covens to destroy?"

"Oh, there are those, of course," he said in what sounded like a very serious tone. "But it's nothing new. So when are you coming over for a visit?"

"I don't know. I'm kind of liking the wayfarer way of life."

"I call bullshit. You like silk sheets and voluptuous females," he said. "Too bad you're not batting for the other team. I would have _loved_ to take you on a—"

"Don't even _think_ about going there!" I cut him off before he could finish.

"Still touchy, huh?" He laughed. "Give it another century or two, and you'll come around."

I seriously doubted that I would ever be _that_ bored, even if I hadn't already found my mate.

"Well, since you're not coming here, how about we meet somewhere in the middle?" Alec sounded hopeful.

It wasn't such a bad idea when I thought about it. "Like where?"

"I don't know. I heard a ridiculous rumor about a coven of animal-drinkers somewhere in Alaska. Supposedly, the original succubi belong to that coven."

I tensed upon hearing that but kept my voice teasing. "And where did you hear that one?"

"Oh, you know. Here and there. Vamps talk."

"You're worse than a human old lady, Al!" I chuckled.

"Whatever. I thought with your history you'd find that interesting." He sounded almost insulted.

"Well, actually I did meet the trio..." I trailed off, knowing that he would take the bait.

"No way! Way to go, Tony!" Alec cheered up immediately. "I knew there was still hope for you. Did you nail all three?"

Trust Alec to care about only one thing. He was worse than Emmett! "A gentleman never tells."

Alec laughed wholeheartedly. "Shit, Tony, you should call more often!"

"If all you're going to talk about is my sex-life, then I probably won't."

"Oh, come on. Don't be like that. Your sex-life is almost as interesting as my sex-life, and I get to live my own, so I need yours to get new ideas from."

"I don't think anyone's sex-life can even _remotely_ relate to yours."

"Probably not," he allowed. "Well, anyways, I gotta book."

"Alec, your slang is not only dated"—I shook my head—"it's _carbon_ dated!"

"Whatever. Mater Aro likes it, and so does my current bed part—"

"Ugh! Stop right there," I cut him off before he could give me more details than I wanted to hear. "I don't want to know."

"All right. Your loss," he said. "Well, it was nice talking to you. You should call more often."

"I'll try. Someone's got to keep you entertained, right?" I was being sarcastic, but Alec seemed to have missed that nuance.

"Right!" he cheered. "Bye, Tony."

"Bye, Al," I replied and ended the call. Surprisingly enough, I actually felt better after talking to him. _I guess not everything about Volterra was bad._

w.W.w

I didn't bother with pleasantries when I approached the house and saw Alice waiting for me on the front porch. "Did he buy it?"

"Yes, and Aro will not be too pleased to hear about it. Here, take a look." Alice's smile was more than a little smug as she replayed her vision for me.

I sighed. _One less thing to worry about is always good_. I didn't kid myself; I knew that my little act of deceit with Alec wouldn't give me too much time. At some point, I would have to come up with something a little more solid; but at the moment, I would take what I could get. Bella was my top priority now, and with Alice predicting her leaving and going to Florida, I would have my hands full.

I decided that I would give Bella some space, just as Alice had insisted I should. It would be hard, knowing that she would be so close and yet I would have to keep my distance. It had been less than twenty-four hours since I saw her last, but I was already just barely functioning. As soon as I didn't have something to focus my mind on, the pain inside me intensified.

I could now understand the pain Marcus always carried with him, a pain that underlined every thought, every action, every moment of his existence. I had not lost Bella to death, but if the pain I was feeling was any indication, I knew I wouldn't be able to survive if she was to be taken away from me forever.

I counted the hours and minutes until the moment in which I would be allowed to see her, touch her, talk to her, hold her in my arms and tell her once again that I love her with all my heart; be it a still and cold one, it was still hers.

I knew I made a promise to Bella that I wouldn't stalk her again, but in the current state of affairs, her safety was more important than keeping my promise. I made sure to watch her from afar and keep my invasion of her privacy to a minimum, but I wasn't about to let myself be caught off guard again. Once was more than enough, and it had cost Charlie his life. Therefore, when the next day rolled in and Bella stayed at home, so did I. Around nine, she left for the grocery store, and I followed by foot, keeping to the shadows. She didn't take long inside the store and was in a hurry when she exited. I assumed that was because she didn't want to tolerate other people's company; she wasn't ready to handle their grief on top of her own.

The dark shadows under her eyes grew more pronounced with each passing hour. I knew she must be tired, but when she tried to sleep, she would wake up screaming every few hours. She would alternate between calling her father's name and pleading for someone not to leave her. I wanted to think that she was asking me not to leave, but as she never said a name, just "Please, stay" and "Don't go", I didn't know whom she meant.

I had to retreat to the forest when the Blacks came for a visit around midday. I knew the pup noticed me and wasn't surprised to hear the malicious note to his thoughts. He blamed me, naturally, for Charlie's death. Both the pup and the Quileute elder had their suspicions about Charlie's death. As they were about to leave, I heard the youngster call out to me in his thoughts. _You._ _Boundary line. Midnight._

Arrogant as he was, he didn't wait for me to confirm or decline his "invitation". Instead, he nonchalantly drove away with his father. I didn't know what to expect from the meeting, but seeing as it didn't include anyone else in the invitation, I didn't expect anything too great to happen.

I returned to my post, watching Bella from the nearby trees. I knew I was breaking my promise to her—more than one, actually—but I didn't think I had any other choice. Bella wouldn't let me keep her safe knowingly, so I had to do it behind her back.

I felt my chest clench yet again when Bella crawled into her bed and I smelled her tears. She was so quiet, as though she was afraid that someone might chastise her for grieving. Her pain was my pain. Even without consummating our bond, my inner demon was feeling the hurt of its mate.

There was nothing I wanted to do more than to throw caution to the wind and gather her in my arms. I wanted to promise her that I would be there to protect her forever, but even as I was thinking the words in my head, I could feel doubt rising inside me. What if Bella would never let me take care of her? What if she continued to push me away and never let me be with her?

I knew that I would never really leave her, even if she did tell me to go. I would stay in the shadows and take care of her to the best of my ability. I also knew that it wouldn't be living, for either one of us. I believed that Bella felt the connection I had felt. It was probably not as intense as it was for me—she was human after all—but I believed that she must have felt it on some level. Would it be enough for her to allow me back in? That was the million-dollar question.

The midnight rendezvous with the wolf gave me a much-needed distraction from the thoughts that were running around in my mind. They threatened to drag me so low under the water that I might not have been able to resurface. Leaving Bella was hard. Knowing that she was still awake and still crying didn't help either. I just hoped that it would be a short encounter and that I would be able to return to my beloved soon.

I arrived at the boundary line a few minutes early after calling Jasper and getting an update from him. Irina and David had picked up Laurent's scent on a trail that led toward the Quileute Reservation, but it continued beyond the treaty line, and they didn't want to risk getting near it. After talking to him, I had a pretty good feeling I knew what the wolves wanted to talk to me about.

I was surprised when Sam was the one to meet me, rather than Jacob.

_Edward, thank you for coming._

The tone was surprisingly polite. I knew that we made some progress after helping Paul, but this was unexpected.

"Hi Sam. No problem. I think I might have an idea why you asked to see me."

_You do?_

"I might. Earlier tonight, we found the trail of a nomad vampire leading toward the reservation," I said. "I assume you've had some company..."

_You might call it that way. I hope neither one of you were too attached to that leech._

"Not particularly, no."

_Good, cause there's one less bloodsucker walking the earth._

I felt good about the news, knowing that Laurent met his end was good. But I also felt cheated out of my revenge.

"Did you burn the pieces?"

_Yes._

Sam showed me his memory from the fight and the burning of Laurent's parts. The nomad didn't know what hit him, and with four wolves surrounding him, he didn't stand a chance.

"Good job with that one."

_Just one thing I need to know._

"What is it?"

_Is this the bastard that killed Charlie Swan?_

"Yes," I said. "As much as I wish I would have had the pleasure of torturing that son of a bitch, I am grateful that you've killed him."

_Wasn't doing you a favor, you know._

"I know."

Sam turned to leave when I stopped him. He turned his head back toward me. _What?_

"There are a few friends that are visiting us for the next few days," I said. "They are animal drinkers, like us. Just wanted to let you know in case you cross their scent."

_As long as they're not planning on having an all-you-can-eat competition in Forks and they stay on your side of the treaty line, we're good._

"They know the boundaries and will not cross them."

_Then they have nothing to worry about._

I could see in his mind his anxiety to return home to a woman named Emily. It was amazing to see the tenderness that accompanied his every thought about the woman. It was very similar to the way my kind felt toward their mates.

"Goodnight, Sam, and thank you."

He didn't bother answering as he sprang toward the reservation.

_At least this day brought some good news, after all._

* * *

**First, I would like to thank Sherryola for her help with this chapter. Without Sherry, I wouldn't have been able to get past the 500 words on Bella's point of view. Thanks for answering my questions!**

**I hope this chapter was a little easier on you than the previous one, especially with Alec making a guest appearance to lighten the mood.**

**Follow me on Twitter IamTheAlleyCat for updates on when the next chapter will be posted (hopefully it will be sooner rather than later).**

**Have a wonderful day and thank you for reading!**

**Alley Cat.**


	33. Growing Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.

**Bella**

I wasn't surprised to find Jacob and Billy on my doorstep the next day. I knew they would visit as soon as they heard the news. In fact, I was a little surprised that they hadn't arrived on that same evening.

"Hi. Come in." I stepped back to let them pass by me.

"I'm so sorry, Bella," Billy said.

"Thank you," I murmured, trying to keep the tears at bay.

"We've been here earlier, on the day..." Jacob trailed off. That explained it—apparently, they _did_ come on the same evening. _I guess I wasn't in any shape to register their presence._

"It's okay. I guess I wasn't very coherent that evening." I tried to find something else to say, but my mind was empty of words. I could see Billy and Jacob looking at each other, as if debating something between them. "What is it?" I asked.

"Bella," Jacob said. "I know that this will not bring Charlie back," his voice cracked, "but I wanted to let you know that the leech that killed him is dead."

I stared at him. His words made no sense to me.

"We caught him earlier today," he explained.

"We?" I mouthed, uncertain.

"The pack."

"Oh." The knowledge brought me little comfort, but I didn't want Jacob to know that. I didn't care for the vampire's fate, it didn't change Charlie's, nor did it change the fact that it was my fault that my father had died.

I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to keep myself from shaking.

Apparently, I wasn't doing a good job of it because Jacob caught me in a hug and murmured, "I'm so sorry Bella. I wish I could do more. Just know that I'm here for you. Even though you probably feel that your whole world if falling apart right now, remember that you're not alone."

"Thank you," I whispered. "I will be okay. I just need a little time."

I extracted myself from his hug before I could give in and let my arms wrap themselves around his torso. He felt warm, and I was so cold inside.

"Bella, would you like to stay with us for a few days?" Billy suggested.

I looked into his old, wisdom filled eyes and saw his own pain reflecting inside them. He had lost his best friend, but he was still offering me a place to stay, warmth and understanding. Didn't he realize that I didn't deserve it? Didn't he understand that I was the reason for his loss? He must have known that!

_Or maybe,_ a small voice whispered inside me _, he's not blaming you._

"Thank you for the offer, but no. I want to stay here." I didn't add the fact that I wouldn't be staying in Forks for much longer, just until after the funeral. The less people knew about my whereabouts, the more peace I could get.

It was hard enough to stand all the stares in the store earlier, and I knew that the funeral and the gathering that followed were going to be ten times as hard. For a moment, I wished for Edward, wished for his strong arms to hold me. But I shook the thought away as soon as it came to me. It was my involvement in his world that brought me to where I was now—an orphan, guilty of my father's death, so much so that I might as well have shot him myself.

"All right, but please, don't hesitate to call if there's anything we can do for you," Billy said. "Even if it's just to talk to someone and even if it's the middle of the night."

"Thank you, Billy. I appreciate it," I said with what was possibly the first genuine smile in the past two days. It wasn't a big smile, and it probably looked quite pathetic, but it warmed me a little to know that people still cared for me.

They turned to leave, saying that they would see me at the church the next day for Charlie's funeral. Jacob gave me another tight hug and repeated his father's offer to call them if I needed anything, before they walked out the door.

Once I heard their car driving away, I went upstairs to my bedroom. I repeated my routine from the day before—I took a shower, changed into my sweats, and crawled under the bed covers. Sleep came easily, but so did the nightmares. I woke up so many times that eventually, around eleven at night, I gave up and got out of bed. I went into the kitchen and started working on the dishes for tomorrow. There wasn't any real need for me to cook; everyone who was going to come to the gathering would bring a dish of their own. I was all too familiar with the customs. But it helped me distract myself from the nightmares.

The nightmares were different this time. I still dreamt about Charlie's death, and I knew I must have screamed and cried out his name in my sleep. However, these weren't the only dreams I had. I also dreamt about Edward and the last few conversations I had had with him. Only...in my dreams, I didn't send him away after he had taken me to my bed; I curled into him. I didn't yell at him to leave me alone; I took comfort in him in a way that I hadn't allowed myself to do in real life. But just as I wrapped my arms around him, pressing myself closer to the comfort of his touch, he began to disappear. The harder I tried to hold on to him the faster his images dissolved into thin air.

I finished cooking and cleaning at around half past four in the morning. I was exhausted. As I made my way back to my bed, I prayed that I could sleep dreamlessly. I fell asleep as soon as my head touched the cool pillow, and almost as instantly, I was thrown into my Edward-dream. He picked me up from the floor and carried me to my bed, holding me as I cried. And just like the dreams before, as soon as I turned to hug him, he began to disappear. Through some cruel turn of events, I didn't wake up after I was left alone in my room; instead, I kept on dreaming. I saw myself wallow away on my bed, and then I, too, began to fade away.

" _Keep fighting!"_ a musical voice, soft as velvet, whispered from somewhere. _"Don't give up!"_

It didn't help, though. A moment later, I found myself staring at an empty bed, seeing that there was nothing left of me. I screamed and screamed, but no sound came out. By some mercy, I finally shot up from my bed, panting and still panicked.

I was afraid to close my eyes again, for it might take me straight back to that terrible place where I faded away and didn't exist. I continued to sit up right for a long while after that. I knew that if I lay back, I would only be plundered by more nightmares. But I could fight my body only for so long and eventually fell asleep again, only to start another round of nightmares.

w.W.w

**Edward**

I called Jasper as soon as Sam was out of earshot. I was already making my way back to Bella's house as I told him of Laurent's demise at the hand of the wolves. He was very calm and collected, just as one would expect from someone with Jasper's level of self-discipline, but I could hear that he was satisfied with the result, even if a little disappointed at not being able to be the one to avenge in the name of his sister.

I was amazed at how much Bella had impacted our lives in such a short period of time. Jasper—who, by his own admission, always kept to himself—already thought of Bella as the second most important person in the world to him after Alice.

Carlisle, who listened to the conversation just like the rest of my family, asked me to look after his little girl. He had thought of her as his daughter for months now, having the advantage of knowing her for so much longer than the rest of us. He knew that there was no way I would be leaving Bella's side tonight.

I heard Emmett's disappointed grumbles and knew that he felt cheated out of a fight yet again. At the same time, I knew he was happy to know that the threat to his family—and that was what Bella was to him, family—was removed.

"Keep her safe, Edward," Alice said quietly.

"I will," I promised. "I'll see all of you tomorrow." I ended the call.

w.W.w

Bella was having nightmares again. I wondered how long it would take for her to be able to get a full night's sleep. It wouldn't be a short period of time. Losing her father the way she did and the sense of blame that she carried with her would lie on her shoulders for a long time. I could only hope that she would let me back in, allow me to comfort her. I honestly didn't think she would be able to pull it through alone, and I was afraid to think of the outcome in that scenario.

Every time Bella screamed, I wanted to jump through her bedroom window and hold her. Every time she shot up, panting, I felt like growling and throwing caution to the wind.

_Tomorrow_ , I thought. _Tomorrow, I'm going to talk to you, and I won't let you push me away, not again. I'm not giving up on you, my Bella, and I sure as hell won't let you give up on yourself._

I didn't know what to make of Bella murmuring my name in her sleep. Her voice was almost too quiet for me to hear, and the emotions behind it were undecipherable to me. She only said it twice, waking up with another loud shout a few minutes later; but there was something telling me that whatever scared her this time, it wasn't me—or at least, not directly.

When night turned into day, I listened to Bella go about her morning routine. During the long hours of the night, I decided to talk to her before the funeral. Her emotional state after the service would be unpredictable, so I thought that maybe I could test the waters beforehand.

I knocked on her front door with much trepidation. Had I still had a heartbeat, it would have soared to dangerous levels as I waited for her to open the door.

"Edward," she said as a form of greeting. She looked terrible. Not that I expected her to shine with health, but I didn't expect her to be this bad. Her eyes were sullen, her entire posture was hunched, and her voice was very weak.

"Bella," I said softly. "May I come in for a moment?"

Bella looked at me with suspicion in her eyes, and as the silence stretched, I grew uneasy and uncertain in my resolve. Finally, after almost five minutes of standing there and staring at each other, she stepped back in a silent invitation.

"Thank you." I stepped inside.

She led me to the kitchen and sat next to the table. I went to sit next to her. Was it only two and a half days ago that I sat next to her at this very same table and gave her the heart-shaped diamond? So much had changed in such a short period of time.

"How are you holding up?" I asked.

She sat with her shoulders hunched and her eyes cast down. She looked defeated and drained. I wanted to offer her a hug, a shoulder to lean on, but I didn't think it was a good idea. Bella's rejection was still very fresh in my memory, and it still stung.

Bella sighed and put her hands, which began to shake slightly, under the table. "I'm doing okay, I guess," she said quietly. She seemed to be trying to form her words in her head, so I waited patiently. She invited me in and she was talking to me. It was more than what I thought she would do.

"I thought about leaving," she said. Her eyes were still on the table in front of her, and I saw a new tension form in her shoulders. I tensed as well. I didn't like hearing her talk about leaving. "I thought that if I went to somewhere like Florida, it would be easier for me to cope."

"But?" I asked before I could stop myself.

Bella raised her eyes to me, and I saw that she had tears in them again. I also saw that she was wearing the necklace with the heart I gave her. It was a positive sign.

"But after thinking about it, and having loads of nightmares," she chuckled without humor, "I realized that running away won't solve anything. I realized that while I have some bad memories here in Forks, it also holds some of the most beautiful memories in my life." Bella looked into my eyes, and I felt hope rising inside me. She had a small trace of a smile on her lips, but what was even more important was that the smile was real. "In the last few weeks, I had gained another family here in Forks, and if I were to leave, I would be leaving them as well." She lowered her eyes again and whispered in a voice that was almost too quiet for me to hear, "I would be leaving my heart behind."

"If you were to leave," I said, "you would have taken my heart with you."

I raised a hand to cup her cheek and felt something inside me melt when she leaned into my touch.

"I know it's my fault that Charlie died," she whispered.

"It's not!" I said firmly, stopping her before she could say anything more. "If you hadn't gotten involved with us, then you would have died as well! The nomad would have come to Forks whether you and I were together or not."

"But I heard Alice say that he followed your scent..."

"He held a grudge against Carlisle, so he came to Forks to spy on him. He caught the scent of your blood and changed his course at the last minute. That's why Alice didn't see him."

"He would have come anyway?" she asked quietly.

I couldn't hold myself back any longer; I lifted her into my lap and wrapped my arms around her, burying my face into her hair. "Laurent, that's his name, would have come to your house no matter what. Your involvement with me saved your life. I'm just sorry I couldn't be here earlier. I might have been able to save your father as well." Suddenly realizing that she might not know that Laurent is dead, I added, "I don't know how much comfort it will bring you, but he's dead."

"Dead," she repeated.

"Dead," I confirmed. "I wish I could claim responsibility for killing him, but it was the wolves."

Bella placed her hand on my chest, right above my still heart. I felt as though she was trying to cuddle inside me and felt her begin to shake.

"Are you cold, my love?" I asked softly.

"A little," she murmured, her words muffed by my clothes.

I stood up and carried her to the living room. I took the folded blanket from the couch and wrapped it around her shoulders. A fleeting thought passed through my mind. _I should really get her an electric blanket_. _Winter is coming and, hopefully, I will be spending more time with Bella in my arms, which means that we'll need to find a solution to my much colder body temperature._ An electric blanket, and possibly an electric bed sheet as well, should be perfect.

The prospect of having Bella in my arms frequently enough to justify things like that made me feel warm inside. Having her back in my arms after thinking I had lost any chance I had with her was nothing short of a miracle. It was the second chance that I didn't think I would get.

We sat on the couch for a long while before I broke the silence. She was still curled up in my lap, her arms wrapped around my waist as tightly as she could muster. I kept rubbing her back and threading my fingers through the silken tresses of her hair. I lost myself in her presence; her scent engulfed me, and her warmth lifted the chillness that had settled inside me three days ago.

"Promise me something, Bella."

"Anything," she said.

"Promise me that you will always talk to me, no matter what," I pleaded.

She looked up and met my eyes, and I smiled at her. She was the most beautiful thing in my life, the only thing that gave my existence meaning.

"I promise," she said, "and I'm sorry I didn't do it before."

"I forgive you, and I accept the fact that sometimes you would need time to process things," I said. "I know that I need that too, sometimes. Just promise me that you won't shut me out. I want to be there for you, even if all you are doing is thinking to yourself."

Bella smiled. It was a smile wider than any I had seen on her face since Charlie's death. "I promise, my Edward. I love you."

"I love you too, my Bella, forever."

w.W.w

**Bella**

I lay awake for a long time after waking up in the morning from yet another nightmare. I wasn't certain of anything anymore. The decision to leave Forks that had seemed to be the best course of action last night now appeared foolish and immature. The nightmares didn't help, either. I dreamt of Alice's eyes following me with unshed tears as I left for the airport; I saw Esme and Carlisle's sadness when I left Forks behind me; but worst of all, I was haunted by the heartbroken expression on Edward's face. It was the same one I had seen the night I had sent him away from me.

I began to question myself. Was I really punishing myself for what happened, or was I causing even more pain by trying to avoid dealing with the consequences of my actions?

I thought about the events that took place since my birthday, and for the first time in three days, I was able to look back with some measure of detachment. I could wallow in guilt for the rest of my life, but that wouldn't bring back my father. I knew that Charlie would want me to be happy. Some part of me knew that he would never blame me for what happened. However, that part was overshadowed by the rest of my mind, telling me that I was the one who brought the devil to my father's doorstep.

I felt sorry for myself for being left alone in the world, but what I was doing to the Cullens—worse, what I was doing to Edward—was no better. And if I were to be honest, at least inside my own mind, I knew that I wanted to be with him. Edward was the one thing that still made sense in this crazy world. I knew him for so little time, but I understood his world better than I understood my own.

Edward made sense to me. The Cullens, they had become my family.

I glanced down at my wrist, where I was still wearing the bracelet that Carlisle and Esme had given me less than a week ago.

They had accepted me as part of their family. I wasn't as alone as I thought I was.

I went to the bathroom to go through my morning routine, and I looked myself in the mirror as I brushed my teeth. My eyes were drawn to the crystal heart that Edward gave me for my birthday.

Edward had given me his heart, and the next thing I did was to banish him away from my side. Didn't it make me even more of a monster?

The decision to leave Forks was crumbling already, and by the time I sat in the kitchen with a bowl of untouched cereal, I knew that I couldn't leave. I didn't want to leave. I wanted to stay close to Charlie, to the memories we created together in the past fourteen months. I wanted to stay close to the new family that I had formed in the past month, and I didn't want to face the world alone any longer. More than anything, I wanted to go to Edward and beg him for forgiveness.

The knock brought me out of my thoughts, and I went to answer the door. I was only half-surprised to find the subject of my thoughts standing in front of me. "Edward." My voice sounded weak even to my own ears.

"Bella," he said. "May I come in for a moment?"

His voice was soft and smooth. It caused a warm feeling to spread through my body. I looked at him with apprehension and felt myself getting lost in his presence. His eyes looked sad and haunted. His shoulders were slightly slumped as though he was expecting scorn. It took me several moments to realize that we were still standing on the doorstep, so I invited him in and led him to the kitchen.

I crossed my hands on the table, trying to keep them from shaking. I looked at him from the corner of my eyes and saw the way his body was angled toward mine. For a moment, I thought that he would hug me just like I wanted him to, but he didn't move. I realized that my rejection from before must still be fresh in his mind, and another wave of guilt washed over me.

I knew that it probably wouldn't be news to him to hear that I thought of leaving Forks, but I still saw him tense as I mentioned it.

"But after thinking about it, and having loads of nightmares"—I tried to laugh but there wasn't any real humor behind it—"I realized that running away won't solve anything. I realized that while I have some bad memories here in Forks, it also holds some of the most beautiful memories in my life." I lifted my eyes to meet his for the first time since we sat down and was glad to find no scorn or rejection in his face. I smiled lightly, feeling more confident. "In the last few weeks, I had gained another family here in Forks, and if I were to leave, I would be leaving them as well." My courage left me, and I couldn't look at him as I finished my sentence. "I would be leaving my heart behind."

I was afraid that he would tell me he changed him mind and doesn't want me anymore, but his next words melted my heart.

"If you were to leave, you would have taken my heart with you."

He touched my cheek with his hand, and I felt the weight slowly lift from my shoulders.

"I know it's my fault that Charlie died," I whispered.

"It's not!" he said firmly. "If you hadn't gotten involved with us, then you would have died as well! The nomad would have come to Forks whether you and I were together or not."

Edward knew me better than I gave him credit. I didn't think he would have understood my reasons for feeling guilty, but he saw right through me. "But I heard Alice say that he followed you scent?" Hearing Alice say that my father's killer followed the scent of Edward and my new family to my house was one of the hardest things I had heard in my life.

"He held a grudge against Carlisle," Edward said. "So he came to Forks to spy on him. He caught the scent of your blood and changed his course at the last minute. That's why Alice didn't see him."

With each word he said, I felt better. While my blood might have attracted the vampire to my house, it wasn't something I could control or change in any way. "He would have come anyway?" I had to ask.

It was then that he finally took me in his arms, and I released a breath I wasn't even aware I was holding. The pain inside my chest eased immediately. I wasn't alone anymore. His words soothed me, as well as the confirmation of the vampire's demise. Jake had told me that he was dead, but hearing it from Edward allowed me to believe that he really wasn't about to come back for me.

We ended up in the living room. Edward wrapped a blanket around me because I was shaking and just held me. We didn't speak for a long while, just lay there, enjoying each other's company, with me curled up in his lap and resting my head on his shoulders. I held him as tightly as I could, afraid that if I let go, he would be taken away from me.

"Promise me something, Bella," he suddenly asked.

"Anything."

"Promise me that you will always talk to me, no matter what."

The request was one I was happy to grant. It would be very easy for me to share my worries with him. "I promise, and I'm sorry I didn't do it before."

"I forgive you," he said. "And I accept the fact that sometimes you would need time to process things. I know that I need that too, sometimes. Just promise me that you won't shut me out. I want to be there for you, even if all you are doing is thinking to yourself."

I smiled then. I felt tears escape my eyes, but this time they were happy tears. "I promise, my Edward. I love you."

"I love you too, my Bella, forever."

He kissed me then, capturing my lips in a hungry kiss. I missed the taste of his lips and the heat that his kisses generated inside me. I wasn't cold anymore. I wasn't alone anymore. I was safe, loved, and in the arms of my future, and we would not part again.

* * *

**This is the last chapter of the story, ladies and gentlemen. Next is the epilogue; Rosalie still needs her happily ever after.**

**Thank you for reading, and I'll see you soon with the epilogue.**

**Alley Cat.**


	34. Epilogue - Rosalie's Bargain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I'm just playing in her sandbox.
> 
> You will notice that this chapter, unlike any other in the story, is written from a third person point of view. I know it's a drastic change, but I felt that it was the best way to tell the ending of this story.

Rosalie walked confidently down the white halls of the castle that had been her residence for over seven decades. Her end of the bargain was complete. Edward and Bella had proven that they were strong enough to survive anything that fate might throw in their way. It was time for Chronos to fulfill his end. She felt both excited and hopeful as she passed through the doors to the throne room and saw him sitting on the throne. As practiced as she was with keeping her thoughts private, she couldn't hide her anticipation and worry about where—and more importantly, when—she would be reunited with her soul mate.

Chronus watched the young soul before him with black cold eyes. He waited for her to be announced before he spoke to her. "Hello, child."

He was well aware that she would be irritated by the term he had used. It amused him how easy it was to get a response from her. For someone who lived countless millennia, there was little that could still amuse him.

Rosalie didn't respond with words but with a simple nod of her head. She was certain that had she opened her mouth, she would have regretted the words that would have come out.

"I hear from my sister that you have been successful in your mission."

"I have," Rosalie said curtly.

"Now, now, no need to be so petulant," he chided her.

Rosalie had to bite her lips to avoid lashing out at him, but she could do very little in regards to her thoughts.

"Still as direct as you were on the first day I met you."

"If you don't like my thoughts, stay out of my head," Rosalie spat, unable to curb her temper.

"But your head is a very interesting place to be in," Chronos said, smiling. It was a cold smile, one that reminded Rosalie of the smiles she had seen on Aro's face just before he ordered the execution of a rogue vampire. Chronos' eyes, just like Aro's in his time, had an evil glint to them that made her grit her teeth and take several deep breaths to calm herself. "I do find myself amused by your perception of me."

"Can we get it over with?" Rosalie asked through clenched teeth.

"So impatient." Chronos sighed. "Oh, well, I guess I can understand some of your impatience. You did spend quite a long time without your better half."

Rosalie agreed with him in her thoughts, but kept her mouth closed.

Gaia watched her quietly from the side of the room. She knew her brother well and had warned Rosalie many times before that patience is the best way to handle Chronos. Gaia hoped that Rosalie would be able to rein in her temper for long enough to get what she wished for. She knew Chronos was capable of piling more difficulties in Rosalie's path, had he wished to do so. There would be very little Gaia could do if he chose to be spiteful.

"Very well, let us move on to the matter at hand," he said. "As I recall, and my memory is quite good, even in my advanced years," he chuckled, "I promised that in the event of your success, I would bring you to a world where both you and your soul mate exists and in a time when the event that caused you two to part did not occur."

"That's correct," Rosalie said.

Chronos raised a brow at her, and his lips tightened to form a thin line. "Are you patronizing me, young lady?" he demanded.

Rosalie rolled her eyes mentally but said nothing.

He waited for several more moments before he spoke again. "I have made the necessary arrangements for your return."

Gaia feared for a moment that he changed his mind and wouldn't allow her to say a private goodbye to Rosalie. Aggravating Chronus was something that very few people could get away with, and Rosalie was not one of them. Gaia needed to have a moment alone with Rosalie, and she was already thinking about alternative plans when Chronos spoke again.

"At my sister's request, I will allow you two to say your goodbyes in private. You will have fifteen minutes with her, and then I will send a servant to take you to the gate. Understood?"

"Will I remember what happened?" Rosalie asked.

Chronos smiled again, the same cold smile as before, and Rosalie felt the chills roll down her spine. He enjoyed seeing the fear spread through her thoughts. It was long past due for the chit to learn respect. He wanted to deny her the goodbye, but it had been his sister's wish—not Rosalie's—and he had no quarrel with his own flesh and blood. However, there was more than one way he could install some fear in Rosalie, and he was not about to pass the opportunity.

"No. You will have no memory of anything that happened. Once you pass the gate, everything will be erased," he said.

Rosalie accepted his words in a silent façade. She wasn't sure why she wanted the memories to remain with her; shouldn't she want to erase all the pain and suffering that she had endured? And yet a part of her wanted to remember everything, wanted her to have them as a deterrent for her own sake. She was afraid of what she would become without the gifts of experience and knowledge that she had gained since she had lost Emmett, but she knew better than to plead with Chronos.

Chronos was pleased with her inner struggle. He basked in the whirl of her emotions. "That will be all."

Rosalie turned on her heals and marched out of the room. She knew that he was privy to her mind, but she would be damned if she let him see her break down. She waited until she reached her room and closed the door before letting out a loud scream of frustration.

Gaia waited for a few moments outside Rosalie's door before she knocked on it. She would have liked to give the girl her privacy, but there was very little time left.

"It's open," Rosalie said when she heard the knock.

Gaia opened the door. "Hello, Rosalie."

"Hi, Gaia." Rosalie smiled. She might be angry with Chronos, but she knew that it would not be too long before she would finally be reunited with her Emmett. That was more important than anything else. "Please, come in."

"Thank you," Gaia said as she walked in and closed the door behind her. She waited a moment, listening to hear anyone in the hall. After making sure there was no one around, she spoke. "Before you go, Rosalie, there is something I would like to give you."

"What is it?"

"Please, sit down, and I will explain." Gaia gestured at the armchairs in the corner of the room.

Rosalie was curious to know what Gaia wanted to give her and walked to sit on the armchair. Gaia sat opposite of her.

"I do not know where or when Chronos is sending you, Rosalie, but I want you to have something with you, wherever it is that you find yourself at," Gaia said. "You are not obliged to accept neither one of the three gifts I want you to have, but I want you to think about them before choosing one way or another."

"All right, I'm listening."

"The first is a gift of death," Gaia said. "The second is a gift of life. The third is a gift of knowledge."

Rosalie was startled, death didn't sound much like a gift to her, she didn't understand why Gaia would give her both life and death—and in a reversed order at that—as gifts.

Gaia took out an envelope from her pocket and handed it to Rosalie. "This will explain everything. Read it and make you decision before you walk through the gate."

Rosalie took the plain envelope and nodded.

"There is very little time left, so I will leave you to read it," Gaia said as she stood up. "I enjoyed knowing you, Rosalie."

Rosalie stood up as well, and the two women hugged tightly. Gaia had come to think of Rosalie as a daughter of sorts and to love her as such. She wished that she could have done more for the young woman but knew that she did her best. She also knew that she would still be watching Rosalie from time to time.

Rosalie didn't hold back her tears as she hugged Gaia. She reminded her of a mix between her own human mother and Esme. Facing the knowledge that she would never see Gaia again made her feel a lot more pain than she thought she would.

"Thank you for everything, Gaia," Rosalie whispered.

"You are most welcome, my dear."

After another tight hug, Gaia walked out of the room. It was never easy to say goodbye to someone whom you have grown attached to. Even after so many years of Gaia's existence, she felt the pang inside her when one of her protégés left.

Rosalie stared at the paper in front of her for a long time after she had finished reading it. It was everything that she had ever wanted and more. What Gaia was offering her was beyond the possible, and Rosalie knew without hesitation that she would accept all three gifts, despite the cost.

As she walked toward the gate, Rosalie knew that by accepting the gifts, she would have to make some very hard decisions in the near future. But she would not be alone, not ever again.

The doors opened before her, and she was enveloped by a bright white light that blinded her. She felt herself being pulled in a thousand different directions at once and what felt like a punch in the middle of her chest before everything disappeared.

w.W.w

Bright light shined from every window on the first two floors of the Cullen house. A long line of glowing Japanese lanterns hung from the porch eaves, reflecting a soft radiance on the huge cedars that surrounded the house. Big bowls of pink roses lined the wide stairs up to the front doors. The house was set for a party.

The Cullens had very little reasons to celebrate in the past decades. The last birthday that was celebrated was Emmett's back in 1935. They were all excited for this occasion, a chance to forget the events that had transpired in the summer that had almost led to the family losing its newest member. The danger had not yet passed, but in the meantime, everyone were determined to have some fun and forget about everything else.

Emmett and Rose would arrive soon. They went on a trip to Europe, just the two of them. Alice used the same time to travel with Jasper to Biloxi, Mississippi and learn more about her human life. Carlisle and Esme felt that the house was empty when four of their children were absent for so long. With Bella's birthday bringing Rosalie and Emmett back to the family, they had an even greater cause to celebrate.

They were all waiting in the huge white living room when Bella and Edward walked through the door. They greeted them with a loud chorus of "Happy birthday, Bella!" causing Bella to blush and look down. She was never comfortable with the spotlight pointed at her and this evening was no different.

 _It's a hundred times worse than I'd imagined_ , Bella thought as she took in the pink candles and the dozens of crystal bowls filled with roses covering every flat surface in the house. There was even a huge birthday cake, a pile of plates, and several silver-wrapped gifts on a table next to Edward's piano.

Edward, ever attentive to her emotions, wrapped an encouraging arm around her waist and kissed the top of her head. He knew that she felt uncomfortable, but he hoped that she would allow herself to enjoy the evening. They had so much tension lately, that a party was just what they needed.

Esme and Carlisle were the closest to the door, and so they were the first ones to hug Bella.

"Sorry about this, Bella," Carlisle whispered, feigning discretion. "We couldn't rein Alice in."

Rosalie and Emmett were next. Rosalie wasn't smiling or hugging, but Bella was grateful to see that there was no hostility in her face, so she didn't mind the lack of warmth. Emmett gave her one of his normal bone-crushing hugs. He had missed his little sister during his trip.

Emmett loved Rosalie with everything that he had, but he wished that she would allow herself to open up to Bella a little more. He knew her well enough to understand her reasons for being unaccepting of Bella and knew that the best way to handle it was to give Rosalie some time to adjust.

"You haven't changed at all," Emmett said with mock disappointment. "I expected a perceptible difference, but here you are, red-faced just like always."

"Thanks a lot, Emmett," said Bella and her cheeks deepened in their color.

He laughed. "I have to step out for a second. Don't do anything funny while I'm gone."

"I'll try." Bella rolled her eyes as he disappeared through the front door.

Alice was the next one to give Bella a hug. Ashe was a lot more careful with her friend's fragile body than Emmett was, but her hug lacked nothing in enthusiasm. Jasper, just like Rosalie, remained in the back, but his reasons for doing so where different. He didn't want to take unnecessary risks when it came to the love of his brother's life. Instead, he used his gift to send a small wave of happiness, familial love, and acceptance in Bella's direction to show her in feelings what he could not express in physical actions.

Bella smiled in his direction and said quietly, "Thank you, Jasper."

He smiled back at her. At times like these, Jasper was thankful for his gift. It wasn't an easy burden to carry for the eternal existence he had as a vampire. More often than not, he wished that he could turn his gift off—a feeling he imagined Edward could identify with easily—but there were rare moments when Jasper was happy to be able to feel the room around him. There was so much happiness, love, and excitement in the air that it was like a drug-induced high to him.

They moved on to opening the presents at Alice's order. Alice was the not-so-unofficial conductor of this party as well as Bella's best friend, so Bella tried to put on her best martyr face and went to open the presents. Emmett rushed through the door just as Alice was handing Bella Edward's gift. Suddenly, the lights went out in the house. Normally, this wouldn't have been a problem for the vampires, but a second after everything went dark, a blinding white light forced everyone to close their eyes.

The lights went back on, and everyone in the room blinked several times, getting their senses back together. Rosalie and Bella were the last ones to get their eyes back in focus. Edward already had his arms around Bella, and he tightened his hold a bit, his mind going a thousand miles a minute, trying to put everything in order. He could distinctly remember that only a moment ago he was sitting with Bella in his arms on the couch in her living room, holding her as she slept. At the same time, he could also remember that she was about to open a present he had given her for her birthday, and it wasn't the crystal heart that he gave her a few days ago.

Bella stared at him in shock. She fell asleep on her couch and suddenly found herself in the middle of the Cullen house, wearing a dress—no doubt Alice's doing—and celebrating...her birthday? Her mind was in a complete mess. There was so much information that was suddenly shoved inside her memory that she couldn't keep track of what happened, when, and how.

Rosalie opened her eyes to the most beautiful sight she could have asked for—her Emmett's shining golden eyes. She threw herself at him, hugging him will all her might. It was a much weaker embrace than the ones Emmett was used to getting from her. It took him another second to register what was happening; Rosalie was crying—not dry-sobbing but real tears—and she was warm.

"Rosalie?" he breathed in a voice that was hardly more than a whisper.

"Oh, my Emmett, I missed you so much," she cried. She couldn't hold back the tears and didn't even have room in her to feel embarrassed for expressing so much emotion in a room full of people. "I love you."

Emmett murmured something intelligible that was probably supposed to be an "I love you, too", but he was too confused to be coherent.

Confusion was the main emotion swirling through the room. No one new what was going on, or what had happened, but where a moment ago there were seven vampires and one human in the house, the sound of two beating hearts filled the room.

* * *

**Recognizable quotes are paraphrased from "New Moon", paperback edition, pages 25-27.**

**This is the end of "When the Twilight Never Comes", but it's not the end of the story. There is a whole new journey that begins after this epilogue, one that would certainly hold more surprises for everyone involved, as well as a new timeline to follow and new trials to face. All that, and more, will be told in the sequel, "The Birth of a New Moon".**

**Thank you to all of you wonderful readers:**

**To the ones that reviewed every single chapter, and to the quiet ones that just read and enjoyed the story. To the ones that had been with me from the first chapter, and to the ones that only discovered my story toward the end.**

**It had been an honor to have you here, and I hope to meet you again in my future stories.**

**Thank you for reading, reviewing, and giving me a really great time writing this story,**

**Alley Cat.**


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